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LOT 0250
Syro-Hittite Terracotta Man Riding Bull
12TH-7TH CENTURY B.C.
2 1/2 in. (41.5 grams, 64 mm).
Standing bull with a rider on its back holding onto the horns, leaning forwards, staring the bull in the eyes and applying what is possibly a bridle decorated with a series of impressed 'dots'; the rider seated forward on the shoulders, applied eyes with central impressed 'dot', a series of dots impressed in an X-pattern between shoulders and hips at the rear and three bands of impressed dots to the legs; bull's tail held firmly between his back legs, applied eyes, shallow dots and incised line representing muzzle and mouth, applied collar at the neck decorated with three lines of impressed 'dots'. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceEx important Mayfair, London, UK, collection, before 2000.
From the private collection of John Meredith, acquired since the 1990s; thence by descent.
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AUCTIONS:
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Cypro-Phoenician Bronze Cup
6th-4th century B.C.Estimate: £250 - 350 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £125
Bell-shaped in profile with carination above the foot. 144 grams, 11.2 cm
Ex property of a London, UK, gentleman, Mayfair gallery, 1990s. -
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Western Asiatic Rock Crystal, Glass and Stone Bead Necklace String
1st millennium B.C. and laterSold for (Inc. bp): £72
A restrung string composed of oblate, barrel-shaped and other beads with irregular clear central feature. 45 grams, 37 cm
Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s. -
Babylonian Head of Humbaba
900-700 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,380
Modelled in the half-round with hollow reverse; thick band of hair above the brow, small deep-set eyes, broad nose and mouth with three raised bands extending to a short beard; mounted on a custom-made stand. 128 grams total, 11.5 cm including stand
London art market, 1995. Private collection, Switzerland. Private collection, London. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12971-245208.
Humbaba (or Huwawa) was a demon of Mesopotamian legend, most famously described in the Epic of Gilgamesh. He was appointed by the god Enlil as the terrifying guardian of the Cedar Forest, a place of the gods. His grotesque features, with glaring eyes and monstrous expressions, were said to strike fear into anyone who saw him. Babylonian representations of Humbaba often emphasise this fierce appearance, with distorted facial traits designed to ward off evil. Such images could serve an apotropaic purpose, protecting people and places from harm, while also evoking one of the most memorable figures of Babylonian mythology.
