A SABEAN LIMESTONE IBEX

CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D.

Details

A SABEAN LIMESTONE IBEX
Circa 1st Century A.D.
Standing on an integral plinth, the stylized body articulated on three sides, with massive curving horns, small bulbous eyes, and a raised vertical line representing the nose, the square block below the head representing the beard, the pointed ears behind the horns, the animal perhaps serving as a basin support
19 in. (48.2 cm) high

Lot Essay

Next to the bull, the ibex is the animal most commonly represented in the art of ancient South Arabia. According to myth, when one captures an ibex, one can have favors granted to him from the divinity of rain and fecundity. For a similar example in alabaster see p. 175 in Antonini, et al., Yémen au Pays de la Reine de Saba'.

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