South Arabian Limestone Head Plaque w/ Original Pigment

About Auction

Live

Ancient / Ethnographic Around The World

By Artemis Gallery

Mar 12, 2020

Set Reminder 2020-03-12 10:00:00 2020-03-12 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Ancient / Ethnographic Around The World https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/ancient-ethnographic-around-the-world-4957
Ancient art from Egypt, Greece, Italy and the Near East, as well as Asian, Fossils, Pre-Columbian, Native American, African / Tribal / Oceanic, Spanish Colonial, Russian Icons, Fine art, much more! Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com

View Full Catalog (436)

• Lot Description
  Ancient Middle East, South Arabia, Qatabanian culture, ca. 3rd century BCE to 1st century CE. Hand-carved from limestone, a high-relief stela featuring a prominent abstract face with a slender triangular nose, deep set ovoid eyes beneath thin brows, a broad forehead, rounded cheek bones, a tapered mandible, and a petite, expressionless mouth. Russet-red pigment colors the face as well as the lateral plaque sides, and chalky white material within the eyes suggests they were once inlaid with attractive fragments of colorful stones. Shallow grooves on the verso indicate how the plaque would have been suspended, perhaps on a slanted surface. Plaques like this example were used as tombstones and typically featured an incised name of the deceased on the plaque body beneath. Size: 6" W x 8.375" H (15.2 cm x 21.3 cm); 10.125" H (25.7 cm) on included custom stand.
  
  The deceased in this part of the world were often represented by anthropomorphic funerary stelae like this one; however, the face is highly stylized, and it is doubtful that this is a portrait of a known individual. They have been found in three areas, one of which was the cemetery at Tamna, the capital city of Qataban. The Kingdom of Qataban rose to prominence in the second half of the 1st millennium BCE, because it controlled the trade in frankincense and myrrh, incenses required to be burned at altars during religious rituals further north and west. A haunting and quite unique object, certain to spark conversation, and a reminder of the deeper history of the Middle East.
  
  A stylistically similar example of a funerary plaque, of a complete form, hammered for GBP 22,500 ($27,372.26) at Christie's, London "Antiquities" auction (sale 1548, April 2, 2014, lot 39): https://www.christies.com/lotfinder/ancient-art-antiquities/a-south-arabian-limestone-pillar-stele-circa-5776277-details.aspx?from=searchresults&intObjectID=5776277&sid=08accfb2-ff48-4998-bd43-868297a004ea
  
  Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-Connecticut, USA private collection, 1970s
  
  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.
  
  #136987

  Condition

  This is a fragment of a larger sculpture. Losses to lower half of plaque as shown. Nicks and abrasions to face, peripheries, and verso, with light encrustations, and fading to original pigmentation. Nice earthen deposits throughout, and great traces of original pigment on the face.
• Shipping Info

  • All shipping is handled in-house for your convenience. Your invoice from Artemis Gallery will include shipping calculation instructions. If in doubt, please inquire BEFORE bidding for estimated shipping costs for individual items.

• Buyer's Premium
  • 26.50 %