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Click here to subscribeA silver plated model of Leo of Lion of MGM Pictures set on an ebonized stepped base with inscription 'Kine Weekly MGM National Showmanship Contest, A Lowrie, First Prize Winner, April 1950', 7.5 x 10 cms along with a French bronze patinated cast figure of a bull upon a rocky base, impressed mark below 'G L Depose 301', 5 x 11.5 cms
26th dynasty, 624-525 BC. A bronze figure of Osiris with crook and flail in his crossed arms, atef crown to his head; mounted on a custom-made stand with an old underside label “Osiris, bronze, XXVI Dynasty, Thebes”. 26.07 grams, 10.4cm including stand (4"). From the collection of a London lady. In the Late Period, small bronze statues were produced in large numbers and were probably meant as donations to the temples. Osiris statues were particularly popular, as he was one of the most important deities connected to important aspects of ancient Egyptian religion, namely afterlife, underworld and fertility. Fair condition.
Roman Period, 30 BC-323 AD. A bronze amuletic figurine depicting an advancing sphinx on a base with head turned, wearing a feathered crown. 7.39 grams, 21mm (3/4"). Private collection, North London; acquired in the early 1980s. This is a very rare depiction of the goddess Isis; the goddess is usually shown either as a human figure, sometimes with wings which associate her with the kite, one of her sacred animals, or sometimes as a cow, or cow headed human, where she has taken over the roles and iconography of the goddess Hathor. In the Graeco-Roman period the goddess is sometimes shown as a human/animal hybrid, most commonly a snake with the head of the goddess, known as Thermouthis. The depiction of Isis with a lion's body could be associated with her role as Mistress of Magic and the lion could be the deity Tutu, a god of magic, sorcery and protection, here syncretized with the powerful goddess. Fine condition.
13th-12th century BC. A bronze figure of a male worshipper with large eyes and prominent nose, arms outstretched and held upwards, head bound by a fillet and the body clothed in a long robe belted at the waist and with sword across. 408 grams, 10cm (4"). Property of a London gentleman; acquired in the late 1970s and 1980s. Fine condition.
2nd-early 1st millennium BC. A bronze figurine of a standing bearded worshipper in long robe and cap, the upper body leaning forward with arms held to the chest; large lentoid eyes and pyramidal nose; attachment peg to the underside of the feet. 33 grams, 70mm (2 3/4"). Property of a Salisbury, Wiltshire, UK collector; ex TimeLine Auctions, 5/2/2014, lot 0256; previously acquired on the London art market. [No Reserve] Fine condition.
1125-1103 BC. A bronze axehead formed as a tubular socket with four moulded ribs projecting to the rear to form four conical spikes, a tongue-shaped flat blade slightly pressed in the upper and lower border with incised cuneiform inscription; accompanied by an old scholarly note, typed and signed by W.G. Lambert, late Professor of Assyriology, University of Birmingham, 1970-1993, which states: Ancient Inscribed Bronze Axehead naming a King of Babylon. Maximum height: 5 cm, Maximum length: 14.8 cm. the centre of this axehead is round, with hole for the shaft. On the opposite side from the blade are four spikes, joined for greater strength about half-way between the points and the shaft-hole. Each spike continues as a ridge of metal around the shaft-hole, the lower forming a circle, the upper three continuing on the opposite side from the spikes onto the blade. This has an upper edge continuing the angle of the spikes, but the lower edge goes downwards to the cutting edge, which is thus deeper than the opposite end of the blade. Originally the blade was deeper that it is now: the upper and lower edges have been hammered to give the blade more strength by thickening the edges. This happened since manufacture because the inscription has been in part obliterated by this hammering. The inscription is in Babylonian cuneiform and reads: te-le-'-?ama[r-utu] [m]ut-nen-na-a e-te?-[ra] [m]uš-te-'-ú aš-ra-ti-[ka] [..........] x du-un-nin i-di-ia-m[a] [lu]-šam-qí-ta ge-ri-ia [ša] ?nabû-ku-dúr-ri-usur lugal šár: You are able, Marduk, to save the pious who seeks after your shrines, [........].Strengthen my arms that I may fell my foes. [Property of] Nebuchadnezzar, king of the world. This is a prayer to the Babylonian god Marduk, with ownership ascription. The Nebuchadnezzar named is Nebuchadnezzar I, king of Babylon 1125-1103 B.C., not the Nebuchadnezzar II known from the Bible. The inscription begins on one side of the blade and is completed on the other side. Another axehead of the same type formerly in the Foroughi Collection has the same inscription, though complete, see G.Dossin, in Iranica Antiquea II (1962) pl. xxiv. Both these axeheads were apparently found in Iran, but the inscription is purely Babylonian. How such Babylonian inscriptions came to be found in Iran is a debated issue. It may be that such texts were copied onto bronze objects made in Iran, but in any case their date is close to that of kings named. This is then an important axehead naming a major king of Babylon. A later note of prof. Lamber completes the translation: te-le-'-?ama[r-utu] [m]ut-nen-na-a e-te?-[ra] [m]uš-te-'-ú aš-ra-ti-[ka] [eli n] a-ki-ri šu-zu-uz-zu [i-zi-q]a ša-ra-ka a-si-' n[a-ak]-ri-ia du-un-nin kak-ki-ia-ma lu-ú-di-ša ge-ri-[ia] ša ?ná-[ku]-dúr-ri-ÚRU lugal šár: You are able, O Marduk,to make prevail over enemies the devout noble who ever seeks your sanctuaries. Your spirit has [blown], destroy (?) my enemies, strengthen my arms that I may tresh [my] foes. Property of Nebuchadnezzar, king of the world. This is Nebuchadnezzar I, king of Babylon 1125-1103 B.C. Another copy of this inscription on the same type of axehead exists in the former Foroughi Collection and was published by G.Dossin in Iranica Antiqua II (1962) p.158 and pl. xxiv. The inscription there is a little better preserved, and one can note one difference: this axehead under study writes du-un-nin, while the Foroughi example writes du-un-ni-in, proving that the one was not copied mechanically from the other. Some one involved understood the writing. This axehead comes from Luristan and probably dates from a little later than the reign of Nebuchadnezzar I, the inscription having been copied in Iran from an object with this inscription made in Babylon, but circulating in Iran. Generally this object is in good state of preservation, though there is some corrosion of the inscription, and the blade has been sharpened recently. 243 grams, 14.8cm (5 3/4"). From a London, UK, collection; acquired 1970s. Nebuchadnezzar I., r. c. 1125-1104 BC, was the fourth king of the Second Dynasty of Isin and Fourth Dynasty of Babylon. He ruled for 22 years according to the Babylonian King List C, and was the most prominent monarch of this dynasty. He is best known for his victory over Elam and the recovery of the cultic idol of Marduk. Fine condition. Extremely rare.
Late 3rd-early 2nd millennium BC. A bronze axehead comprising a tubular socket with scooped mouth, rectangular blade with lateral ribs, socket spike formed as two wrestlers in conical caps grappling. 152 grams, 15.5cm (6"). From a London, UK, collection; acquired 1970s. Very fine condition.
2nd millennium BC. A bronze axe head with ovoid socket and ribbed tongue-shaped blade, two elliptical piercings to each face extending to the socket. See discussion in Godard, F. The Art of Iran, London, 1965, p.76-82. 203 grams, 10cm (4"). Private collection, South West London; acquired before 2000. Fine condition.
2nd millennium BC. A bronze axehead with ovoid socket and ribbed tongue-shaped blade, two elliptical piercings to each face extending to the socket. See discussion in Godard, F. The Art of Iran, London, 1965, p.76-82. 153 grams, 11cm (4 1/4"). Property of a London gentleman; acquired before 1980. Fine condition.
3rd millennium BC. A bronze belt plate depicting Ningishzada, the Mesopotamian god of the underworld, depicted as two intertwining snakes with horned lion heads; surrounded by border and series of punched dots; pierced for attachment. 70 grams, 25cm (9 3/4"). From a London, UK, collection; acquired 1970s. Very fine condition.
10th-7th centruy BC. A bronze horse bit consisting of a horizontal bar with curled ends onto which is threaded two figures in the form of human-headed horned and winged sphinxes. Cf. Moorey, P.R.S. The Art of Ancient Iran, in Ancient Bronzes, Ceramics and Seals, Los Angeles, 1981, items 150-3; The British Museum, accession number 130677. 368 grams, 18cm (7"). Property of a London gentleman; acquired in the late 1970s and 1980s. Fine condition.
10th-9th century BC. A bronze harness ring in the form of an ibex head with large curving horns below which are two felines biting the ends; ring below ibex head on which the felines are standing. For a similar example see Honolulu Academy of Arts, accession number 2494.1 168 grams, 10cm (4"). Property of a North London collector; acquired in the 1970s. Fine condition.
6th-4th century BC. A bronze figure of a standing leopard on a rectangular base, with rounded features and ribbing to the neck and shoulders. Cf. similar leopard in chalcedony in A Peacable Kingdom. The Lweo Mildenburg Collection of Ancient Animals, Christie's London catalogue, 26th-27th October, 2004, item 179. 19 grams, 41mm (1 3/4"). Property of a London gentleman; acquired before 1996. Fine condition, worn.
3rd millennium BC. A bulbous Bronze Age axehead with socket with flared blade. For the socket see Khorasani, M.M. Arms and Armour from Iran - The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tuebingen, 2006, p.659, Cat.344. 245 grams, 10cm (4"). From a private collection; acquired before 1980. Very fine condition.
2200 BC. A long Bronze Age axehead with socket with ribbed upper edge and ribbed chevrons to the rear face; the blade triangular in plan with convex edge and swept profile. Cf. Khorasani, M.M. Arms and Armour from Iran - The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tuebingen, 2006, p.659, Cat.344. 230 grams, 13cm (5"). From an old English collection; acquired in the 1980s. Fine condition.
2nd millennium BC. A hollow-formed bronze kohl pot shaped as a fish with fins, gills and pellet eyes; a bronze applicator formed as a tapering shank with ibex-head finial. 86 grams total, 92-101mm (3 3/4 - 4"). Property of a North London collector; acquired in the 1970s. [2] Fine condition.
11th-14th century AD. A bronze weight in the form of an elongated hexagon, the top curved toward the long sides and divided into two by a beaded line, each half bearing a bird seated between scrolls. 24.24 grams, 28.0mm (1"). Property of a gentleman; acquired in the late 1960s-early 1970s. [No Reserve] Extremely fine condition.
19th century AD. A large gilt-bronze hollow-formed figure of Avalokiteshvara seated cross-legged on a lotus flower base with crown of palmettes, two hands pressed together at the chest, rosary and lotus flower held in his two raised hands. 23 kg, 69cm (27 1/4"). From an important London collection, acquired in the 1970s. Fine condition, usage wear.
19th century AD. A large gilt-bronze hollow figure of Buddha sitting cross-legged on a lotus flower base with a crown of coils and knop finial, loosely draped mantle; one hand resting on the knee and the other placed palm-upwards in the lap. 25 kg, 66cm (26"). UK art market, acquired prior to 1980. Fine condition, usage wear.
19th-20th century AD. A gilt-bronze figure of Amitabha Buddha sitting cross-legged on a lotus flower base with hands folded in the lap, draped with swags of beads and wearing an elaborate headdress. 20.5 kg, 53cm (20 3/4"). Acquired on the London art market prior to 1980. Amitabha is the Buddha of infinite life and the one who grants long life, and one of the most popular Buddhist deities in Tibet, China and Japan. He is represented seated in padma asana, or the lotus posture, with both hands in the meditation gesture holding a vessel of the elixir of immortality. The cult of Amitabha is believed to have had its origins in north-west India in the areas influenced by Zoroastrian concepts linking light and life. Amitabha is believed to reside in Sukhavati, the Pure Land of Highest Happiness situated in the west. Good condition; lacking topknot to head.
19th century AD or later. A hollow-cast gilt-bronze figurine of Arya Tara sitting cross-legged on a lotus flower base with crown of flames, flanked by looped garlands and flowers, hands in the gesture of instruction. Mullin, G. Female Buddhas: Women of enlightenment in Tibetan Mystical Art, New Mexico, 2003. 2.9 kg, 28cm (11"). Acquired on the London art market prior to 1980. Tara is perhaps the most popular female Buddha in Tibet, and images of her can be found in almost every temple and monastery throughout Central Asia. Her popularity may be due to her association with the other popular Buddhist deity, Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion and patron protector of Tibet; she is regarded as the female energy, or Shakti, of this Bodhisattva. She represents the energy of Enlightenment and is depicted with green skin; green is considered to be the colour of energy as displayed in nature. She is worshipped on the days when the moon is new or full. Fine condition.
Han Dynasty, 206 BC-220 AD. A bronze hu piriform vase with domed lid; the surface ornamented with raised bands of geometric ornament, animal-masks, roundels and other details; two loop handles to the shoulder with openwork flange detailing and similar to the base, body and lid. 3.1 kg, 35cm overall (13 3/4"). UK art market, acquired prior to 1980. Fine condition.
Later 5th-early 6th century AD. A bronze radiate-headed bow brooch comprising: a D-shaped headplate with a raised outer edge, opposed scrolls and three pairs of radiating lugs with inset cabochon garnets; shallow bow with three raised ribs to the bow; leaf-shaped footplate with two bands of raised opposed running scroll ornament, six small lateral lobes each with an inset cabochon garnet, finial formed as a stylised beast-head; catchplate and two pin-lugs to the reverse. Cf. brooches with a similar profile in Menghin, W. The Merovingian Period. Europe Without Borders, Berlin, 2007; Dixon, P. The Making of Barbarian Europe, Oxford, 1976, p.77; MacGregor, A. & Bolick, E. A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals), Oxford, 1993. 80 grams, 16.5cm (6 1/2"). Property of a European gentleman living in London. The brooch features elements of the design of Visigothic radiate-headed bow brooches (e.g. Menghin, 2007, item IX.2, IX.6.3). Its opposed-scrolls and running-scrolls motifs are found on the example in the Madrid Archaeological Museum (Dixon, 1976, p.77) as well as elsewhere in Germanic Europe (e.g. Anglo-Saxon saucer brooches, MacGregor & Bolick, 1993, item 2.1-3; headplate of a bow brooch, Menghin, 2007, item VIII.21.2, VIII.6.2, 6.3). Fine condition, usage wear to catchplate.
6th-7th century AD. A large group of items comprising: a pair of radiate-headed bow brooches with semicircular headplate with five knops, footplate with lateral roundels and a flat tear-shaped terminal; a large group of white-coloured metal belt set parts of rectangular, round, shield, dove-tail and other shapes decorated with incised lines and pierced ornaments; a group of bronze bell-shaped pendants, some with engraved geometric decoration; two bronze flat triangular pendants with ring and loop; a group of lead-alloy belt set parts of domed round shape with pelleted border, stamped circular decoration in the middle and loops on both sides; a group of lead-alloy belt set parts of openwork cross design with two loops in both sides; a group of rectangular shaped parts bent into a tube shape with two rows of pierced squares; a group of various belt decorative pendants of circular and triangular shape and one anthropomorphic figure with arms pointing down and legs splayed (one missing). Cf. Menghin, W. The Merovingian Period. Europe Without Borders, Berlin, 2007, item III.13.6.1, III.15.1. 524 grams total, 5-160mm (1/4 - 6 1/4"). Property of a professional; acquired on the European art market in the 1980s. [150] Fine condition, some objects fragmentary. Rare.
7th century AD. A bronze bow brooch comprising: a D-shaped headplate with raised edge and two bands of roundels and five radiating lobes to the outer edge, carinated bow, tongue-shaped footplate with roundels and raised edge, small lateral lobes, finial with animal-head finial; pin-lugs and catchplate to the reverse. Cf. Menghin, W. The Merovingian Period. Europe Without Borders, Berlin, 2007, item III.15.1. 45 grams, 14cm (5 1/2"). Property of an Essex collector; acquired 1970s. [No Reserve] Fine condition.
6th century AD. A large flat-section tinned bronze counterplate from a buckle set with three domed bosses, each with a beaded collar, incised three-strand braid to the centre flanked by bands of ropework ornament; notch to the upper edge to accommodate the tongue of the buckle; three pierced lugs to the reverse. Cf. Nice, A. Revue Archéologique de Picardie: La Nécropole Mérovingienne de Goudelancourt-lès-Pierrepont (Aisne), Senlis, 2008, items S.302, S.354. 53 grams, 72mm (3"). Property of a Cambridgeshire collector; acquired continental Europe 1948; by descent 2004. Very fine condition.
5th-8th century AD. A large bronze neck-ring formed as a tapering shank with round-section median section, twisted bands and cruciform-section terminals with ring-and-dot eyes. Cf. Tvauri, A. The Migration Period, Pre-Viking Age, and Viking Age in Estonia, Tartu, 2012, plate 121, item 3. 258 grams, 18cm (7"). Property of a London businessman, from his grandfather's collection formed after World War II; thence by descent 1972. Fine condition.
6th-8th century AD. A gilt-bronze shield-shaped plaque, hollow to the reverse, with central cross between four discoid lobes; pierced lugs to the forward edge; two large and four smaller holes for attachment rivets, one rivet in situ. 6.18 grams, 24mm (1"). Property of an Essex gentleman; found Eastern France in the late 19th century. [No Reserve] Very fine condition.
6th-7th century AD. A bronze openwork disc with four circular holes and four slots, bifacial design of incised concentric bands of geometrical and crescent-shape designs. Cf. Nice, A. Revue Archéeologique de Picardie: La Nécropole Mérovingienne de Goudelancourt-lès-Pierrepont (Aisne), Senlis, 2008, fig.244. 15 grams, 42mm (1 3/4"). Property of a professional; acquired on the European art market in the 1980s. [No Reserve] Fine condition.
12th century AD. A convex tongue-shaped bronze casket mount with male head modelled in the round; the plaque forming the robed body with panels of green champ levé enamel detailing; pierced twice for attachment; mounted in a modern silver frame hallmarked with an anchor (for Birmingham), lion passant and date-letter 'A' in a shield (for 1925), maker's mark 'W.N. Ltd'. 100 grams, mount: 70mm, frame: 11.5 x 15cm (2 3/4"). Property of a Bath, England collector; acquired in England, 1970s. Fine condition.
14th-15th century AD. A large gilt-bronze openwork pendant with suspension lug, outer hexafoil with alternating rosette and regardant beast motifs, the inner hexagon with central winged dragon surrounded by trefoil foliage and rosettes. 40 grams, 90mm (3 1/2"). Property of a Cambridgeshire gentleman; acquired in the 1990s. Very fine condition. Extremely rare.
2nd century BC. A bronze statue of a seated youth, possibly Antiochus VII, with head turned to the left, nude apart from a chlamys with brooch at the shoulder; right hand extended and originally holding an object, possibly a sword or scroll; mounted on a custom made stand. 290 grams, 11cm including stand (4"). Property of a gentleman; acquired in the late 1960s-early 1970s. Fine condition.
13th-14th century AD. A mixed pair of bronze annular brooches comprising: a round-section hoop with five radiating trefoils, iron pin; one a flat-section plaque with rim to the centre, band of ring-and-dot motifs. 24 grams total, 48-65mm (2 - 2 1/2"). From an old Munich collection; acquired on the German art market before 2000. [2, No Reserve] Fine condition.
14th-15th century AD. A bronze ring with quatrefoil plaque, hatched leaves and central rectangular intaglio capital 'R'. 4.11 grams, 23mm overall, 18.68mm internal diameter (approximate size British R, USA 8 1/2, Europe 18.75, Japan 18) (1"). Property of an Essex gentleman; acquired on the UK art market. [No Reserve] Extremely fine condition.
12th-13th century AD. A bronze ring with broad flat-section hoop with incised cross decoration to the shoulders, discoid plaque with incised raven motif with spread wings 3.35 grams, 19.84mm overall, 18.64mm internal diameter (approximate size British R, USA 8 5/8, Europe 18 1/2, Japan 17) (3/4"). Property of a London businessman, from his grandfather's collection formed after World War II; thence by descent 1972. Fine condition.
12th-13th century AD. A D-section bronze hoop with expanding shoulders and discoid bezel; to each shoulder a piriform panel with starburst motif; to the bezel a stylised bird with pellets to the body and wings. 6.25 grams, 22mm overall, 20.05mm internal diameter (approximate size British U 1/2, USA 10 1/4, Europe 23, Japan 22) (3/4"). Property of a Surrey collector; acquired in the early 1970s. Fine condition.
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