Published Scytho-Sarmatian Bronze Horse Trapping
Central/Eastern Europe, East of Colchis, Black Sea area, Northeastern Caucasus (Georgia), Scytho-Sarmatian culture, ca. 3rd to 2nd century BCE. A fine shield-shaped horse trapping of an openwork design with two registers of animals, the lower with a pair of rearing horses confronted against a central pole standard. Colchis was the location of the Golden Fleece sought by Jason and the Argonauts in Apollonius Rhodius' epic tale, entitled "Argonautica." The incorporation of the Golden Fleece into the myth may have derived from the local practice of using fleeces to sift gold dust from rivers. Similar bronzes were found in the Caucasus, west of the Caspian Sea in Dagestan. Size: 5.9" W x 6" H (15 cm x 15.2 cm); 6.875" H (17.5 cm) on included custom stand.
Published: J. Eisenberg, Art of the Ancient World, Vol. XXIV (2013), no. 239.
Cf. V. Nauka. "Archeologie de l’Union Sovietique." 1992, p. 10, no 13.
Cf. Agayev. "Belt Buckles from Dagestan, Soviet Archeology."
This piece has been searched against the Art Loss Register database and has been cleared. The Art Loss Register maintains the world’s largest database of stolen art, collectibles, and antiques.
Provenance: ex-Royal-Athena Galleries, New York, New York, USA; ex-private Paris, France collection, acquired on the London art market in May 2008
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
#165069
Condition Report: Repair to lower suspension hook on verso, with restoration to material around hook, and resurfacing with light overpainting along new material and break lines. Slight bending to overall form, with one stable hairline fissure to one horse on lower register, softening to some finer details, and nicks to peripheries and some upper suspension hoops. Great preservation to openwork form and detailing as well as fantastic green and brown patina throughout.
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Central/Eastern Europe, East of Colchis, Black Sea area, Northeastern Caucasus (Georgia), Scytho-Sarmatian culture, ca. 3rd to 2nd century BCE. A fine shield-shaped horse trapping of an openwork design with two registers of animals, the lower with a pair of rearing horses confronted against a central pole standard. Colchis was the location of the Golden Fleece sought by Jason and the Argonauts in Apollonius Rhodius' epic tale, entitled "Argonautica." The incorporation of the Golden Fleece into the myth may have derived from the local practice of using fleeces to sift gold dust from rivers. Similar bronzes were found in the Caucasus, west of the Caspian Sea in Dagestan. Size: 5.9" W x 6" H (15 cm x 15.2 cm); 6.875" H (17.5 cm) on included custom stand.
Published: J. Eisenberg, Art of the Ancient World, Vol. XXIV (2013), no. 239.
Cf. V. Nauka. "Archeologie de l’Union Sovietique." 1992, p. 10, no 13.
Cf. Agayev. "Belt Buckles from Dagestan, Soviet Archeology."
This piece has been searched against the Art Loss Register database and has been cleared. The Art Loss Register maintains the world’s largest database of stolen art, collectibles, and antiques.
Provenance: ex-Royal-Athena Galleries, New York, New York, USA; ex-private Paris, France collection, acquired on the London art market in May 2008
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
#165069
Condition Report: Repair to lower suspension hook on verso, with restoration to material around hook, and resurfacing with light overpainting along new material and break lines. Slight bending to overall form, with one stable hairline fissure to one horse on lower register, softening to some finer details, and nicks to peripheries and some upper suspension hoops. Great preservation to openwork form and detailing as well as fantastic green and brown patina throughout.
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Time, Location
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