between 3100 B.C. and 2900 B.C.
black serpentine ;
Morgan Seal 21
Description
1 cylinder seal : black serpentine ; 28 x 25.5 mm
Provenance
Acquired by Pierpont Morgan sometime between 1885 and 1908.
Notes
"The mouflon is not often found on cylinders of this period. However, it appears on painted vases from Tepe Giyan (E. Herzfeld, Iran in the ancient East, London and New York, 1941, pl. XIX). Since starlike designs like those in 21 occur on other vases from Tepe Giyan (ibid., pl. XX), it seems possible that the seal originated in that region." Porada, CANES, p. 6
Summary
Tree before mouflon, stag, goat -- In field: scorpion, star-shaped design on pole -- Three star-shaped designs.
Catalog link
Classification
Place
Southern Mesopotamia.
Department