Description:

Caucasus region, modern day Iran / Armenia, Urartu culture, ca. 2300 to 2100 BCE. One of my favorites! A bronze applique with a repousse repeated motif of a hunting scene. Around the edges on two sides are a series of tiny perforations made to sew this plaque onto clothing. Within a raised border are four pairs of creatures locked in a close hunt. Each pair consists of a person on horseback with a tall, conical hat, drawing back an arrow on a large bow. The horse is shown midstride, and they are very close to the fleeing animal - probably a gazelle, but possibly an ibex - with the legs of the horse and the ungulate overlapping. In all but one of the motifs, the embattled animal already has a feathered arrow sticking out of the back of its long neck. Comes with custom stand. Size: 3.25" W x 4.8" H (8.3 cm x 12.2 cm); height on stand: 6.65" (16.9 cm)

The hunting exploits of kings during this time period are a common iconographical subject, and hunting seems to have been an important social ritual - acted out in dances and parades, with special game parks and hunting enclosures for the wealthy - for elites in this and other ancient Near Eastern and Central Asian societies.

Provenance: private New Jersey, USA collection

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#123194

  • Condition: Small losses to the edges of the plaque, with a bend that has a small tear at its lower end diagonally across the lower half. The artwork is beautifully preserved.

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May 18, 2017 7:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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