Sumerian votive head
€2,610
available
Object number
AR3174
| Object: |
Sumerian votive head
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| Material: |
Stone. Calcite or marble.
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| Period: |
3rd Millenium BC. Chalcolithic. |
| Description: |
Head of a woman with large nose, protruding mouth and once inset eyes, now visible without inset as deep eye sockets. The hair on the forehead is elaborately styled and gathered at the back of the head and fixed with a net. It is a rare fragment of a small Sumerian votive figurine. |
| Dimensions: |
The head is 35mm high, the head including the stand is 68mm high.
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| Condition: |
Fragment of a larger figurine with a broken edge at the neck. Unobtrusive chipping on the back of the head and tiny chips and abrasions on the rest of the head. Overall very good condition. The now hollow eyes were once filled with inlays. In recent decades, the head has been mounted on a black lacquered wooden base by means of a metal pin. The wooden base rests on an acrylic plate. Label reading "Erlenmeyer Collection" on the back of the stand, label reading "P5295/II GRU" under the acrylic base, sticker reading "Sotheby's London No. 120 12.6.97" under the wooden base.
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| Provenance: |
Acquired by us on the art market in 2021. Previously in a Paris collection. The piece comes from the Sotheby's London auction, June 12, 1997, lot no. 120. Previously in the Erlenmeyer Collection, acquired between 1943 and around 1965. The couple Prof. Hans Erlenmeyer (1900-1967) and Marie-Louise Erlenmeyer (1912-1997) shared a passion for the ancient cultures of the Middle East and the Eastern Mediterranean. Between 1943 and around 1965 they built an impressive collection of artefacts from that region located in Switzerland. Numerous publications were inspired and a valuable bridge was built between collectors and the world of academia. Objects from the collection have often been on display in international exhibitions or in the nearby Basel Museum of Antiquities. In the years 1988 to 1998 the collection was finally returned to the art cycle. It required no less than seven auctions at the renowned auction houses Christie's and Sotheby's bearing the title "Erlenmeyer". The present piece comes from the above-mentioned auction entitled "Antiquities including Western Asiatic cylinder seals and antiquities from the Erlenmeyer Collection (Part II)". The proceeds flowed into the Swiss Erlenmeyer Foundation, which was founded by Mrs. M.-L. Erlenmeyer in order to use its funds to finance nature conservation projects and in particular animal welfare projects. We hope that the treasures from the Erlenmeyer Collection will inspire further generations of collectors and researchers alike. |
| References: |
For a fully intact Sumerian votive figurine see Metropolitan Museum of Art, inventory no. 62.70.2.
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| Authenticity: |
We unconditionally guarantee the authenticity of every artefact, all items are subject to our lifetime return policy on authenticity.
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