Lot 91A
Central Asia, Bactria (Bactria-Margiana/BMAC), ca. 3rd to 2nd millennium BCE. A huge alabaster jar, hollowed out internally about halfway down its body, with two zoomorphic or possibly mask-like handles and a fitted lid with a zoomorphic, possibly equine form as its handle. The body of the jar is bell-shaped, with a flat base; the artist or artists who created this piece took into account its gorgeous banded surface, with white, grey, red, and brown hues. The handles and the underside of the lid have very small drilled perforations. Size: 5.25" W x 7" H (13.3 cm x 17.8 cm)
The invention of copper tubes - first in Egypt ca. 3600 to 3200 BCE and then spreading outward through the Near East and central Asia - allowed artisans to drill very hard stones (in conjunction with sand as an abrasive), and create finer forms. However, copper drills only created cylindrical items, and so the hollowing out of bulbous vessels like this one still required the use of an elongated stone borer in the form of a figure-of-eight. Imagine the hours of work that went into making this single jar!
Alabaster, a light-colored, calcareous stone quarried from the Iranian Plateau, had strong connections in the ancient world to religion and specifically the gods. For example, in the site of Kultepe-Kanes, a huge burial mound, there were many disc-shaped alabaster idols, naked alabaster goddesses, and lion figures. We also know that alabaster was a precious material, widely traded in the region from the 4th millennium BCE onward. A vessel like this one was most likely made to be placed into a tomb to hold offerings.
Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection
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#127667
- Condition: Vessel itself has wear on surface and small loss from base (although it stands very well on its own). Lid has loss on one side of the rim and wear on surface.
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