ca. 800 B.C.
black serpentine
29.5 x 12.5 mm
Morgan Seal 614
Provenance:
Acquired by Pierpont Morgan sometime between 1885 and 1908.
Notes:
"Seals 612-619, all of medium size, are examples of the most common rendering of hero and victim. They can be dated about 800 B.C., because of their close resemblance in subject and rendering to Berlin 639-644, which were so dated by Moortgat on the basis of relevant archaeological evidence from Ashur. Seals 620-626, on the other hand, which present a heterogeneous group of contest scenes, probably vary considerably in date."--Porada, CANES, p. 73
Summary:
Male sphinx attacked by archer on one knee, plant between them -- In sky: star; crescent; rhomb (below wing of sphinx).
Place:
Southern Mesopotamia.
Period:
Catalog link:
Classification:
Department: