Lot of 19 Ordos 12K Gold Belt Components - 149.5 g

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Antiquities from Egypt, Greece, Italy, Asia

By Artemis Gallery

Oct 25, 2018

Set Reminder 2018-10-25 11:00:00 2018-10-25 11:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Antiquities from Egypt, Greece, Italy, Asia https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/antiquities-from-egypt-greece-italy-asia-3538
Featuring Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Etruscan, Near Eastern, plus Asian art from Central and Far East. If you love the classics, this is the sale for you. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com

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• Lot Description
  Central Asia, Ordos Culture, modern day Mongolia / China, ca. 500 to 100 BCE. A collection of nineteen 12 karat gold plaques, made to be part of a belt or harness, with one T-shaped with a round boss at its center, two trapezoidal, two rectangular with one curved terminal, and the rest purely rectangular. Each is made of 12 karat gold sheet, roughly 50% silver and 45% gold, with some small amounts of copper and lead. The edges are folded downward, forming a border that, along with small pins that project from the back of each, would have been used to attach the plaques to leather backings. Repousse motifs of fantastical birds decorate each, with most featuring multiple birds in flight, moving around each other. The boss at the center of the T-shaped plaque is decorated with what appears to be an eagle. Size of T-shaped piece, which is the largest component: 3.55" W x 2.3" H (9 cm x 5.8 cm); total weight: 149.5 grams
  
  The Ordos people were equestrian nomads who lived in the grassy, high steppes environment of the Ordos Plateau. Although today this area is a desert, when the Ordos people lived there, it was lush, and cross-cut with many rivers. The Ordos culture is an interesting mix of Central Asian and Chinese, possibly the furthest east group of Scythians. They created beautiful bronzes which have been found in graves from the Ordos homeland to China.
  
  A few similar plaques from the British Museum: http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=227256&partId=1&searchText=ordos&images=true&page=1 and http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=227301&partId=1&searchText=ordos&images=true&page=1
  
  Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection
  
  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.
  
  We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
  
  #139546

  Condition

  Triangular-shaped plaque has been repaired from three pieces, with adhesive present on the back of the piece. The others have small signs of wear, including bending and light encrustation, especially the two trapezoidal ones, both of which have very small losses. One of the rectangular ones also has a small loss on one side. Some light tearing to the folded edges. Small encrustations of leather/woven textiles in the backs of a few of the pieces.
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