EARLY DYNASTIC IIIA PERIOD, CIRCA 2600-2500 B.C.

Details

A SUMERIAN WHITE SHELL CYLINDER SEAL
EARLY DYNASTIC IIIA PERIOD, CIRCA 2600-2500 B.C.
1 5/8 in. (3.7 cm.) high

Provenance

The Stansfeld Collection of Ancient Art, Sotheby's, New York, 2 December 1988, lot 20.
German private collection.
Antiquities, Christie's, London, 2 May 2013, lot 19.
UK private collection, London, thence by descent.

Literature

M. Dietrich and O. Loretz (eds), Internationales Jahrbuch für die Altertumskunde Syrien-Palästinas, Band 35, 2003, p. 528, no. 11.

Special notice

This lot is offered without reserve.

Sale room notice

Please note that the title of this lot should read: A SUMERIAN WHITE SHELL CYLINDER SEAL

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Claudio Corsi Specialist, Head of Department

ccorsi@christies.com +44 (0) 20 7389 2607

Lot Essay

Engraved with a contest scene, the hero shown flanked by rampant gazelles that are being attacked by two lions. A robed figure and a bull-man are shown respectively behind the felines, with a scorpion and a crescent moon in the field.

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