Western Asiatic Terracotta Idol

Carved steatite pendant of a coiled serpent with central hole; lozenge and angled detailing to obverse. 5.68 grams, 26 mm



Private collection, 1999. 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 Turquoise Glaze 30.5 x 14.5 mm. The design consists of a stylized sacred tree and either side of it a standing stag with rump next to the tree, but head turned back. The end of the scene is marked by a simple guilloche in vertical position. The design is framed by a line above and another beneath. This seal is Mitanni, c. 1500-1200 B.C., and from anywhere between Syria and Western Kurdistan. It is a product of the Hurrian civilisation of the area, and the stylized tree is a symbol of the storm god, Hurrian Teshub, Babylonian Adad, Hebrew Hadad or Baal. The tree has a central trunk terminating in a bud, and three branches off each side similarly terminating in buds.The stags occur commonly on Mitanni seals, but while they may well be symbolic, it is not known of what they may be the symbol. The guilloche is a standard decorative filler of 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 exceptionally fine condition, the only mark of its age being that the glaze has lost something of its original colour. In this excellent condition, such seals are rare.'; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 6.51 grams, 30 mm



From the private collection of a North American lady, formed 1970s-early 1990s, with collection reference no.P30. 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.

Carved in the round with its legs tucked underneath the body, stylised head with large almond-shaped eyes and incised details to the muzzle, large hump to the neck. 86 grams, 59 mm



From a collection formed before 1988, London and Geneva. 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.