CIRCA 5TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.

Engraved within the tondo is a ram in profile to the right, with a collar tied around its neck, its ribbons billowing above its back. Beribboned rams were a popular subject in Sasanian art, as seen on mosaics, architectural stucco blocks, seals and textiles. The ram was a manifestation of the god Verethragna and a symbol of "royal glory," to which the ribbons may allude (see p. 110 in P.O. Harper, The Royal Hunter, Art of the Sasanian Empire). A punched inscription at the rim on the exterior names the owner and identifies the vessel's weight. For another Sasanian dish with a beribboned ram but cruder in style, see pic. 2 in E. Bagirov, "Sassanid Toreutics discovered in Shemakha, Azerbaijan, as Artistic Metalwork in the Art of Sasanian Iran," in Digital Archive of Brief Notes and Iran Review, 2020. For a similar ram head positioned beneath a banqueting couple, see no. 18 in A.C. Gunter and P. Jett, Ancient Iranian Metalwork in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and the Freer Gallery of Art.