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LOT 1063
Western Asiatic Carnelian and Other Bead Collection
1ST MILLENNIUM B.C. AND LATER
1/8 - 3/4 in. (108 grams total, 4-19 mm).
Comprising several hundred mixed small beads, mostly round or tubular forms, in red carnelian and other materials; all pierced for stringing. [478]
ProvenanceUK gallery, early 2000s.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1063
Western Asiatic Carnelian and Other Bead Collection
Sold for (Inc. bp): £338
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Western Asiatic Astronomical Manuscript Page Group
17th-18th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £442
Group of sixteen leaves from a manuscript dealing with astronomical lore, written in dense blocks of thirty four lines of neat Naskh black ink script with red headings and highlighting; tabulation grids and marginal topic headers; front page with French title 'Ouvrage d'Astronomie de Sahnoun' (A work on Astronomy by Sahnoun); probably from North Africa. 106 grams, 25 x 18 cm
Acquired 1970s-1996. Property of a North American collector. London collection, 2016. -
Old Babylonian Clay Cuneiform Tablet Bearing a Royal Letter From Iluni King of Esnunna to Warassa King of Der
Circa late 18th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,640
Written in dense cuneiform over two principal faces and two side edges of the pillow-shaped tablet. 219 grams, 11.3 cm
Specialised collection of cuneiform texts, the property of a London gentleman and housed in London before 1992. Thence by descent to family members. Examined by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert FBA (1926-2011), historian, archaeologist, and specialist in Assyriology and Near Eastern archaeology, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The collection is exceptional for the variety of types, including some very rare and well preserved examples. -
Mesopotamian Decorated Bulla Envelope Containing Tokens
Mid 6th-mid 4th millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,950
Spherical hollow clay mass with the remains of impressions to the exterior and ceramic tokens inside; surface cracked. 169 grams, 61 mm
Specialised collection of cuneiform texts, the property of a London gentleman and housed in London before 1992. Thence by descent to family members. Examined by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert FBA (1926-2011), historian, archaeologist, and specialist in Assyriology and Near Eastern archaeology, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The collection is exceptional for the variety of types, including some very rare and well preserved examples.
This bulla envelope likely belonged to the Sumerian or Uruk culture. It is believed that there are less than 250 complete and fragmentary examples of this type of bulla envelope worldwide. This is one of only a handful of examples ever offered at auction. The bulla first emerged in Mesopotamia around 8000 B.C. The clay envelopes contain a number of pre-baked accounting tokens, which were used in commercial and stock-taking transactions. Placing the tokens inside the bulla greatly enhanced the honesty of the transaction, as the bulla would have to be broken or crushed to reveal its contents.
