A STONE EWER IN THE FORM OF A RAM, NORTHERN IRAN, PARTHIAN CULTURE, 247 BC–AD 224
A STONE EWER IN THE FORM OF A RAM, NORTHERN IRAN, PARTHIAN CULTURE, 247 BC–AD 224
Expert's note
With its rounded body, short legs, and boldly projecting ram's head, this remarkable little ewer translates into stone a vessel form far better known in pottery. Liquid was introduced through the neck rising from the animal's back and poured through its pierced muzzle, ingeniously combining a functional vessel with a sculptural animal form. Ram-shaped pouring vessels with a similar dorsal filling neck, loop handle, and elongated muzzle are particularly associated with the Early Iron Age cultures of northern Iran, conventionally termed Amlash, circa 1200-700 BC, while related zoomorphic vessels continued to be produced during the Parthian period. The present ewer is particularly rare for its execution in stone, as surviving examples are overwhelmingly ceramic. Compare a related Amlash pottery vessel with a ram-shaped head, 1200-800 BC, 35 cm, in the World Museum, Liverpool, accession number 1967.216. Compare a related Parthian pottery vessel with a ram-shaped head, c. 1st-2nd century AD, 30.2 cm long, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 65.5.3.
Finely carved and well hollowed, the ovoid body supported on four short, subtly tapering legs and extending into an elegantly arched neck. The head is powerfully modeled with prominent eyes, small ears, and massive spiral horns, the long tubular muzzle pierced to form the pouring spout. A short cylindrical filling neck with gently flared rim rises from the back and is joined to the rounded body by a sturdy loop handle. The mottled green stone with large areas of creamy calcification, and brown inclusions.
Provenance: The collection of The Zelnik István Southeast Asian Gold Museum, acquired in the mid-1970s in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Dr. István Zelnik, President of the Hungarian South and Southeast Asian Research Institute, is a former high-ranking Hungarian diplomat who spent several decades in Southeast Asia, building the largest known private collection of Asian art in Europe. In December 2025, he was awarded medals of national recognition by the Royal Government of Cambodia for his exceptional contributions to the scientific study, preservation, and international understanding of Angkor and Koh Ker. Zelnik founded the Hungarian Southeast Asian Institute in the early 2000s. The Institute supported a range of research programs at Angkor and Koh Ker, including archaeological surveys, light detection and ranging (LiDAR) investigations, epigraphic studies, and historical research. These efforts have contributed to a deeper understanding of the Angkorian empire, the pre-Angkor period, and Cambodia's prehistoric times. Research supported by the institute played a key role in raising international awareness of Koh Ker and led to its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Condition: Very good condition with old wear, light nibbling, tiny nicks, losses, traces of weathering, the stone with natural fissures, some of which have developed into hairline cracks.
Weight: 222 g
Dimensions: Length 10 cm
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie's New York, 13 June 2000, lot 503
Price: USD 6,462 or approx.
EUR 11,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Parthian burnished terracotta horse-shaped vessel, circa 3rd-1st century B.C.
Expert remark: Compare the related form. Note the different material and size (22.2 cm)
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie's New York, 10 December 2004, lot 416
Price: USD 10,755 or approx.
EUR 16,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Parthian theriomorphic pottery vessel, circa 2nd century B.C.-2nd century A.D
Expert remark: Compare the related form. Note the different material and size (19 cm).
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A STONE EWER IN THE FORM OF A RAM, NORTHERN IRAN, PARTHIAN CULTURE, 247 BC–AD 224
Expert's note
With its rounded body, short legs, and boldly projecting ram's head, this remarkable little ewer translates into stone a vessel form far better known in pottery. Liquid was introduced through the neck rising from the animal's back and poured through its pierced muzzle, ingeniously combining a functional vessel with a sculptural animal form. Ram-shaped pouring vessels with a similar dorsal filling neck, loop handle, and elongated muzzle are particularly associated with the Early Iron Age cultures of northern Iran, conventionally termed Amlash, circa 1200-700 BC, while related zoomorphic vessels continued to be produced during the Parthian period. The present ewer is particularly rare for its execution in stone, as surviving examples are overwhelmingly ceramic. Compare a related Amlash pottery vessel with a ram-shaped head, 1200-800 BC, 35 cm, in the World Museum, Liverpool, accession number 1967.216. Compare a related Parthian pottery vessel with a ram-shaped head, c. 1st-2nd century AD, 30.2 cm long, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 65.5.3.
Finely carved and well hollowed, the ovoid body supported on four short, subtly tapering legs and extending into an elegantly arched neck. The head is powerfully modeled with prominent eyes, small ears, and massive spiral horns, the long tubular muzzle pierced to form the pouring spout. A short cylindrical filling neck with gently flared rim rises from the back and is joined to the rounded body by a sturdy loop handle. The mottled green stone with large areas of creamy calcification, and brown inclusions.
Provenance: The collection of The Zelnik István Southeast Asian Gold Museum, acquired in the mid-1970s in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Dr. István Zelnik, President of the Hungarian South and Southeast Asian Research Institute, is a former high-ranking Hungarian diplomat who spent several decades in Southeast Asia, building the largest known private collection of Asian art in Europe. In December 2025, he was awarded medals of national recognition by the Royal Government of Cambodia for his exceptional contributions to the scientific study, preservation, and international understanding of Angkor and Koh Ker. Zelnik founded the Hungarian Southeast Asian Institute in the early 2000s. The Institute supported a range of research programs at Angkor and Koh Ker, including archaeological surveys, light detection and ranging (LiDAR) investigations, epigraphic studies, and historical research. These efforts have contributed to a deeper understanding of the Angkorian empire, the pre-Angkor period, and Cambodia's prehistoric times. Research supported by the institute played a key role in raising international awareness of Koh Ker and led to its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Condition: Very good condition with old wear, light nibbling, tiny nicks, losses, traces of weathering, the stone with natural fissures, some of which have developed into hairline cracks.
Weight: 222 g
Dimensions: Length 10 cm
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie's New York, 13 June 2000, lot 503
Price: USD 6,462 or approx.
EUR 11,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Parthian burnished terracotta horse-shaped vessel, circa 3rd-1st century B.C.
Expert remark: Compare the related form. Note the different material and size (22.2 cm)
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie's New York, 10 December 2004, lot 416
Price: USD 10,755 or approx.
EUR 16,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Parthian theriomorphic pottery vessel, circa 2nd century B.C.-2nd century A.D
Expert remark: Compare the related form. Note the different material and size (19 cm).
Buyer's Premium
30%
Sale price
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
