Western Asiatic Gold Pendant with Cabochons

Group of portrait miniatures on glass discs including two males in military uniform, a close-up female face, female bust in three-quarter view, Iranian royal badge of an advancing lion wielding a sword with the rising sun on its back, and cinquefoil with lion-and-sun motif to the centre; mounted in a glazed wooden frame with gilt edging. 3 kg total, 50.5 x 49 cm



Private collection, London, UK. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

Accompanied by a copy of an old scholarly note, typed and signed by W.G. Lambert, late Professor of Assyriology, University of Birmingham, 1970-1993, which states: 'Cylinder Seal of Faience with Green Glaze, 26.5 x 12 mm. The main scene consists of a standing man, dressed in a robe that reaches his ankles, with a decorated band passing over one shoulder. His arms are held at the waist. He faces on his left a stylized sacred tree consisting of a main stem and five brances [sic] ending in buds at the top. The remaining area is filled with two registers. The lower one consists of of a guilloche consisting of three spirals. The upper register shows two, facing, recumbent horned animals, both with heads turned back, but one with raised tail, the other with tail downwards. The whole area of design is contained within a line above and another beneath. This seal is Mitanni, c. 1500-1200 B.C., and from anywhere within the area from Syria to Western Kurdistan. It reflects the Hurrian civilization of this area, and the tree is the symbol of the storm god, Hurrian Teshub, Babylonian Adad, Hebrew Hadad or Baal. The standing figure is probably meant as a worshiper. The horned animals are well known on such seals, but while they may well be symbolic, they are not understood. The guilloche is a common item of decoration for the period. Faience is a manufactured substance, comparable to the modern porcelain. In the ground it often deteriorates over the centuries and has a powdery surface. this one, however, is in fine condition and the only mark of its age is that the glaze covering its surface has lost its colour. In this fine condition such seals are rare.'; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 3.82 grams, 26 mm



From the private collection of a North American lady, formed 1970s-early 1990s, with collection reference no.P32. Accompanied by a copy of a scholarly note, typed and signed by Professor Wilfrid George Lambert dated September 1990. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

Biconvex in profile with columns of cuneiform text to the upper face. 28.9 grams, 33.3 mm



Private collection, Jerusalem, assembled in the 1970s-1980s. European private collection, acquired in 1998. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.