Bactrian Stone Column idol. H: 30,9. Very fine. Decorative

Column idol CULTURE: Bactria PERIOD: Circa end of 2nd Millennium - 3rd Millennium B. C. MATERIAL: Yellow stone DIMENSIONS: Height 30. 9 cm PROVENANCE: Private European collection 1970. STATE OF CONSERVATION: Intact, apart from four superficial marks. DESCRIPTION This piece is a cylindrical idol in the form of a column, wider at the top. It has a straight, shallow groove both on top and on the base. The Bactria culture is the modern archaeological designation for a Bronze Age civilization of Central Asia, dated circa 2200–1700 BCE, located in present day northern Afghanistan, eastern Turkmenistan, southern Uzbekistan and western Tajikistan. The Bactria-Margiana site was discovered and named by the Uzbek archaeologist Viktor Sarianidi in 1976. Bactria was the Greek name for the area of Bactra (modern Balkh) , in what is now northern Afghanistan, and Margiana was the Greek name for the Persian satrapy of Margu, the capital of which was Merv, in modern-day southeastern Turkmenistan. With its impressive cultural material including monumental architecture, bronze tools, pottery and jewellery of semi-precious stones, the Bactro-Margiana Complex shows many of the hallmarks of civilization. Many carved stone seals were produced in this culture. Sculpturally, the idols, both the stylized ones (in disc form or cylindrical) and the anthropomorphic ones, many variations of which have been found, are the most outstanding works of art. Their meaning is still unknown, particularly in the case of the geometric ones. Notes: The seller guarantees that he acquired this piece according to all national and international laws related to the ownership of cultural property. Provenance statement seen by Catawiki. The piece includes authenticity certificate. The piece includes Spanish Export License (Passport for European Union) - If the piece is destined outside the European Union a substitution of the export permit should be requested. This process could take between 1 and 2 months.