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THBElegant Bactrian Banded Alabaster Stemmed Chalice
Lot 47
About Seller
Artemis Gallery
686 S Taylor Ave, Ste 106
Louisville, CO 80027
United States
Selling antiquities, ancient and ethnographic art online since 1993, Artemis Gallery specializes in Classical Antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal / Oceanographic art. Our extensive inventory includes pottery, stone, metal, wood, glass and textil...Read more
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Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Estimate:
$3,200 - $4,800
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Bid Increments
| Price | Bid Increment |
|---|---|
| $0 | $25 |
| $300 | $50 |
| $1,000 | $100 |
| $2,000 | $250 |
| $5,000 | $500 |
| $10,000 | $1,000 |
| $20,000 | $2,500 |
| $50,000 | $5,000 |
| $100,000 | $10,000 |
| $200,000 | $20,000 |
About Auction
Live
By Artemis Gallery
Sep 17, 2020
Set Reminder
2020-09-17 10:00:00
2020-09-17 10:00:00
America/New_York
Bidsquare
Bidsquare : CLEARANCE - Ancient, Pre-Columbian, Ethno Art
https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/clearance---ancient-pre-columbian-ethno-art-5605
End-of-Summer Clearance sale featuring discounted pricing on antiquities from Egypt, Greece, Italy, and the Near East...plus Viking, Asian, Pre-Columbian, Tribal, Russian Icons, Spanish Colonial, Fine Art, more! Starting prices have been reduced up to 65% from original auction prices. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
End-of-Summer Clearance sale featuring discounted pricing on antiquities from Egypt, Greece, Italy, and the Near East...plus Viking, Asian, Pre-Columbian, Tribal, Russian Icons, Spanish Colonial, Fine Art, more! Starting prices have been reduced up to 65% from original auction prices. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
View Full Catalog (388)
- Lot Description
**Originally Listed At $1800**
Ancient Central Asia, Bactria, ca. late 3rd to early 2nd millennium BCE. A stunning ritual chalice of a tall, elegant form, hand-carved from soft honey-yellow alabaster with natural veining in darker hues that illuminates when held to a bright light. The vessel presents with a wide conical foot beneath a slender stem, a broad cylindrical body with a carinated lower edge and tapered walls, and a discoid rim surrounding the deep basin. The entire chalice retains a meticulously-polished smoothness to its surfaces, and faint traces of the original chisel/drill marks are visible within the basin. A substantial and finely preserved example of elaborate Bactrian ritual artistry! Size: 5.875" W x 10.8" H (14.9 cm x 27.4 cm).
Alabaster, a light-colored, calcareous stone from the Iranian Plateau, has strong connections in ancient western and central Asia 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 chalice like this one was made to be placed into a tomb to hold offerings or for ritual proceedings that pertained to the religious practices of the ancient Bactrian peoples.
A strikingly similar example, of a slightly larger size, hammered for $16,250 at Christie's, New York "Antiquities" auction (sale 1915, December 6, 2007, lot 61): https://www.christies.com/lotfinder/ancient-art-antiquities/a-bactrian-alabaster-chalice-circa-late-3rd-early-5004838-details.aspx?from=searchresults&intObjectID=5004838&sid=39b60e30-eb56-4c10-a983-97b29d9079d7
Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-private California, USA collection, acquired in the 1980s
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
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#148399Repair to areas of rim and carination on lower body, with small chips, light restoration, and minor adhesive residue along break lines. Minor abrasions and nicks to foot and cylindrical body, with light encrustations. Light earthen deposits throughout.Condition
- Shipping Info
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