WESTERN ASIATIC LATE ACHAEMENID VESSEL WITH MYTHICAL BEAST HANDLES 4th century BC A bronze amphora vessel with rounded body and tapering neck, lid attached by a chain secured to the neck; handles in the form of a rearing lion with ibex horns, handle to the front with a spout. 829 grams, 25cm (9 3/4"). Condition Fine condition. Condition report [Click to show] This information is available to our registered clients. Please Log In to view. Provenance Property of North West London gentleman; acquired from a London collector in the late 1990s; previously in a private collection formed in the late 1980s-early 1990s. Footnotes The sources of Achaemenid art which under Cyrus the Great (559-529 BC) at the palace of Pasargadae shows a certain Greek and Ionian influence are ancient and varied. However it is under the prestigious reign of Darius (522-486 BC) that it acquired its "Court Style" and formalism with its repertory of shapes. Achaemenid art may be considered his royal achievement. Foreign workers, craftsmen and artisans contributed to the artistic output and to the royal buildings: Egyptians, Syrians, Ionians, and in particular Carians are mentioned on the Persepolis Treasury tablets as being the silversmiths There is for this amphora with zoomorphic handles and spout two parallels, a vessel in Sofia from the treasure of the Koukova Mogila tumulus (Duvanlij), and a silver vessel now in the Getty Museum. The similarities are in certain details, such as the handles in the form of fantastic beasts with lion head and ibex horns, however, the other vessels are larger and have a double frieze of facing lotus flowers and palmettes separated by a guilloche, below these is vertical fluting.
WESTERN ASIATIC LATE ACHAEMENID VESSEL WITH MYTHICAL BEAST HANDLES 4th century BC A bronze amphora vessel with rounded body and tapering neck, lid attached by a chain secured to the neck; handles in the form of a rearing lion with ibex horns, handle to the front with a spout. 829 grams, 25cm (9 3/4"). Condition Fine condition. Condition report [Click to show] This information is available to our registered clients. Please Log In to view. Provenance Property of North West London gentleman; acquired from a London collector in the late 1990s; previously in a private collection formed in the late 1980s-early 1990s. Footnotes The sources of Achaemenid art which under Cyrus the Great (559-529 BC) at the palace of Pasargadae shows a certain Greek and Ionian influence are ancient and varied. However it is under the prestigious reign of Darius (522-486 BC) that it acquired its "Court Style" and formalism with its repertory of shapes. Achaemenid art may be considered his royal achievement. Foreign workers, craftsmen and artisans contributed to the artistic output and to the royal buildings: Egyptians, Syrians, Ionians, and in particular Carians are mentioned on the Persepolis Treasury tablets as being the silversmiths There is for this amphora with zoomorphic handles and spout two parallels, a vessel in Sofia from the treasure of the Koukova Mogila tumulus (Duvanlij), and a silver vessel now in the Getty Museum. The similarities are in certain details, such as the handles in the form of fantastic beasts with lion head and ibex horns, however, the other vessels are larger and have a double frieze of facing lotus flowers and palmettes separated by a guilloche, below these is vertical fluting.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
