IRAN, CIRCA 5TH CENTURY B.C.

Details

A PAIR OF ACHAEMENID GOLD BRACELETS
IRAN, CIRCA 5TH CENTURY B.C.
3 3/16 in. (8.1 cm.) wide; weight: 208.3 gr. and 194.2 gr.

Provenance

with Bluett & Sons, London, acquired in 1979.
with Gallery Six, New York, 1994.
Ancient Jewelry: Wearable Art, Christie's, New York, 1-10 December 2015, lots 7 and 8.

Special notice

The USA prohibits the purchase by US persons of Iranian-origin “works of conventional craftsmanship” such as carpets, textiles, decorative objects, and scientific instruments. The US sanctions apply to US persons regardless of the location of the transaction or the shipping intentions of the US person. For this reason, Christie’s will not accept bids by US persons on this lot. Non-US persons wishing to import this lot into the USA are advised that they will need to apply for an OFAC licence and that this can take many months to be granted.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Claudio Corsi Specialist, Head of Department

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Lot Essay

The Greek historian Xenophon (430-354 B.C.) wrote that bracelets were among the gifts highly esteemed amongst the Persians (Anabasis I.2.27). Glazed brick panels from the Achaemenid city of Susa depict archers wearing bracelets, and reliefs at the capital city of Persepolis depict bracelets being given as tribute to the King. The particular shape seen here is a common type in Achaemenid jewelry, often with the addition of animals head terminals (see pp. 132-133 in J. Curtis and N. Tallis, eds., Forgotten Empire: The World of Ancient Persia).

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