Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

Lions lifting goat, and man attacked by lion-griffin

between 2000 B.C. and 1750 B.C.
hematite ;
Morgan Seal 880
Description
1 cylinder seal : hematite ; 25 x 13.5 (13) mm
Provenance
Acquired by Pierpont Morgan sometime between 1885 and 1908.
Notes
"One or more worshipers standing with or without interceding deities before a god constitute the most frequent subject in the present group. This theme is common in Old Babylonian glyptic. Moreover, a number of the gods represented here are characterized by the same emblems as those in Old Babylonian cylinders. ... Seals 880-884 present figures deriving from the Old Babylonian contest frieze. In 880, the principal actors are a lion attacking a goat and a lion-griffin menacing a man on one knee."--Porada, CANES, p. 109-110
Cylinder has slightly concave sides.
Summary
Lion lifting goat by shoulder -- Man on one knee attacked by lion-griffin -- Worshiper, fish before him -- Terminal: inscription.
Classification
Department