Mesopotamian stamp seal in bull shape
Price: on request
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Object number
AR3217
| Object: |
Mesopotamian stamp seal in bull shape
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| Material: |
White stone, possibly calcite.
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| Period: |
Jemdet Nasr period, 3100 BC to 2900 BC. |
| Description: |
Beautiful seal in the form of a recumbent bull. The stamp shows various animals, quadrupeds and a scorpion. They are depicted abstractly by the means of small drill holes. The seal is pierced horizontally for threading.
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| Dimensions: |
36mm long, 26mm high, 17mm thick.
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| Condition: |
Very good condition. One part at the rear re-attached with visible joints. The overall impression is unimpaired. Including fine details such as horns, no notable chips. The stamp on the bottom is also in good condition. Magnificent specimen.
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| Provenance: |
Acquired by us in 2021 on the Swiss art market. Previously in the Swiss private collection of Carlo Monzino. Mr. Monzino was a respected private collector and art lover, portrayed for example by Andy Warhol in 1974. In 1965 he made a major purchase being able to acquire the famous British Jacob Epstein collection. That is also how this seal came into his posession. Sir Jacob Epstein (1880-1959) was an American sculptor and painter who lived in England from 1905 and established his ethnographic and archaeological collection there.
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| Publication: |
This seal is published in E. Bassani, M. D. McLeod, Jacob Epstein Collector (Milan, 1989), fig. 950.
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| References: |
Cf. H. Keel-Leu, Vorderasiatische Stempelsiegel, Die Sammlung des Biblischen Instituts der Universität Freiburg Schhweiz, Orbis Biblicus et Orientalis, volume 110 (1991), nos. 42 to 44. Cf. Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, acc. no. 1929.335. For an almost identical piece on the art market cf. Christie's New York, auction "Antiquities" 9 June 2011, lot 1, sold for 11,250 USD. |
| Authenticity: |
We unconditionally guarantee the authenticity of every artefact, all items are subject to our lifetime return policy on authenticity.
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