Lot 42B
Central Asia, modern day Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, Bactria (Bactria Margiana/BMAC), ca. 3rd to 2nd millennium BCE. A huge and heavy stone goblet, made of a marbled grey and white chlorite. The exterior has been skillfully carved to present a relief motif of male ibexes and some kind of succulent-like plant with long, reaching arms that terminate in flowers. Shells have been inlaid to create eyes and phalluses for the ibexes; incised lines give texture to the animals' fur and horns, as well as to the arms of the plants. The goblet stands on a thick, round leg that flares smoothly in a wide foot. The rim echoes this shape, flaring outward from the walls of the bowl. Size: 4.6" W x 7" H (11.7 cm x 17.8 cm)
Ancient Bactria had a harsh landscape of deserts, high mountains, and very few fertile areas, but sat along the crossroads of the Silk Road, between the Hindu Kush and the Oxus River. Its culture, known to us largely through incredibly rich burials and hoards like the famous Oxus Treasure, was composed of a class of nomadic horse lords (some of whom were women, whose burials, equal in richness and weaponry to the men's, have been well documented) who had the wealth to purchase and be buried with incredibly fine objects of gold, silver, bronze, iron, and stone. They in turn supported the artisans who created these items.
Bactrian vessels, like this one, were commonly made from chlorite, a soft grey stone similar to steatite that was widely available in Oman and was traded north through Arabia, the Gulf, Iran, Baluchistan, and Pakistan. The iconography of the ibex is seen over and over again, replicated in gold, bronze, and stone, by the Bactrians and their neighbors in the ancient Near East. The phalluses on the depictions here hint at their meaning - virility, a popular subject of decoration through the present day, and by extension health, strength, and power.
Provenance: Ex-Private East Coast, USA collection
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#121064
- Condition: Excellent, with very small areas of encrustation on interior.
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