Three Luristan Copper & Bronze Bangles or Torques
Near East, Persia, Luristan, ca. 1200–650 BCE. A trio of personal ornaments from the highland workshops of Luristan, each drawn from a single rod and bent into an open ring. The largest is a bronze bangle of heavy D-section, tapering to blunt terminals that stop just short of meeting. The smaller, more petite example is copper, its band thickened at the midpoint and worn smooth by handling. The thinnest, of bronze, is a wide penannular hoop with one end hooked, likely worn at the throat as a torque or gorget rather than at the wrist. All three carry a mottled green and earthen patina raised over long burial. Metal ornaments of this kind were made in quantity across the Zagros valleys, serving simultaneously as adornment, portable wealth, and grave furnishing. Size: 4.3" H x 4.6" W x 0.3" D (10.9 cm H x 11.7 cm W x 0.8 cm D).
Luristan, the mountainous belt of the central Zagros, produced one of the ancient world's most prolific metalworking traditions between roughly the twelfth and seventh centuries BCE. Its cemeteries yielded horse fittings, pins, standards, and vessels alongside vast numbers of open bracelets and neck rings like these. Because the population that made them was substantially pastoral and seasonally mobile, wealth was carried on the body rather than stored in architecture: a bangle was ornament, currency, and status marker at once, and the same objects followed their owners into the grave. The penannular form, split rather than closed, allowed a single size to be sprung open and adjusted to the wearer, which is why so few Luristan hoops show any fastening mechanism at all.
Provenance: private Vero Beach, Florida, USA collection, acquired before 1998
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #204609
Condition
Thinnest is missing end of finial and has some slight bending to form. All have weathering and abrasions to surfaces commensurate with age. Otherwise, two are intact and all are very nice with rich patinas.
Near East, Persia, Luristan, ca. 1200–650 BCE. A trio of personal ornaments from the highland workshops of Luristan, each drawn from a single rod and bent into an open ring. The largest is a bronze bangle of heavy D-section, tapering to blunt terminals that stop just short of meeting. The smaller, more petite example is copper, its band thickened at the midpoint and worn smooth by handling. The thinnest, of bronze, is a wide penannular hoop with one end hooked, likely worn at the throat as a torque or gorget rather than at the wrist. All three carry a mottled green and earthen patina raised over long burial. Metal ornaments of this kind were made in quantity across the Zagros valleys, serving simultaneously as adornment, portable wealth, and grave furnishing. Size: 4.3" H x 4.6" W x 0.3" D (10.9 cm H x 11.7 cm W x 0.8 cm D).
Luristan, the mountainous belt of the central Zagros, produced one of the ancient world's most prolific metalworking traditions between roughly the twelfth and seventh centuries BCE. Its cemeteries yielded horse fittings, pins, standards, and vessels alongside vast numbers of open bracelets and neck rings like these. Because the population that made them was substantially pastoral and seasonally mobile, wealth was carried on the body rather than stored in architecture: a bangle was ornament, currency, and status marker at once, and the same objects followed their owners into the grave. The penannular form, split rather than closed, allowed a single size to be sprung open and adjusted to the wearer, which is why so few Luristan hoops show any fastening mechanism at all.
Provenance: private Vero Beach, Florida, USA collection, acquired before 1998
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #204609
Condition
Thinnest is missing end of finial and has some slight bending to form. All have weathering and abrasions to surfaces commensurate with age. Otherwise, two are intact and all are very nice with rich patinas.
