Lot 58
**Originally Listed At $700**
Ancient Near East, Mesopotamia, ca. 3200 to 1900 BCE. A hollow-form earthenware head, perhaps representing a deity, with finely modeled and incised beguiling features such as closed almond-shaped eyes framed by lashes with arched brows above, a crested coiffure with a pair of applied horns or horn-like ornaments, pierced ears, a curved nose, and pursed lips - this striking visage arising from a short neck. Quite a mesmerizing example from this cradle of civilization. Size: 4.75" W x 5.375" H (12.1 cm x 13.7 cm)
Mesopotamia is known as the "cradle of civilization" mainly due to the emergence of the city as we know it in the region of Sumer and the invention of writing, both in the 4th millenium BCE (though writing systems also developed in Egypt, the Indus Valley, China, and Mesoamerica). In addition, the Mesopotamians are credited with the invention of the wheel. Archaeologist Sir Leonard Woolley discovered "the remains of two four-wheeled wagons, [at the site of the ancient city of Ur] the oldest wheeled vehicles in history ever found, along with their leather tires" (Bertman, 35) in 1922 CE. Mesopotamia has also been credited with the domestication of animals, inventing useful tools and sophisticated weaponry as well as the chariot, creating beer and wine, developing an agricultural and irrigation system, inventing the sail and sailboats, developing religious rites, as well as an understanding of time into hours, minutes, and seconds.
Provenance: private Florida collection, acquired in Tehran in the 1970's
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#121194
- Condition: Old losses to nose, central crest, and peripheries commensurate with age.
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| From: | To: | Increments: |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $299 | $25 |
| $300 | $999 | $50 |
| $1,000 | $1,999 | $100 |
| $2,000 | $4,999 | $250 |
| $5,000 | $9,999 | $500 |
| $10,000 | $19,999 | $1,000 |
| $20,000 | $49,999 | $2,500 |
| $50,000 | $99,999 | $5,000 |
| $100,000 | $199,999 | $10,000 |
| $200,000 + | $20,000 |