Premium Artcurial
33
-
SILVER WINGED BULL HANDLE
See original version (French)
33
-
SILVER WINGED BULL HANDLE
See original version (French)
Estimate €8,000 - €12,000
Voluntary lot
Description
SILVER WINGED BULL HANDLE
Achaemenid art, early 4th century BC
A curved handle, probably from an amphora, depicting a winged bull rearing up on its hind legs, with its forelegs tucked beneath its belly; the details are very finely chiselled. The base of the handle, which was once attached to the body of the vase, forms a bovine hoof.
Height: 10.3 cm
Provenance: Former French private collection, assembled in the 1970s
Pierre Bergé & Associés, Paris, 26 May 2011: lot 214 (ill.)
Christian Levett Collection, Musée d’Art Classique de Mougins
Exhibitions: Musée d’Art Classique de Mougins (MACM), Mougins, France, June 2011–August 2023 (Inv. no. MMoCA744)
Animal, Musée d’Art Classique de Mougins (MACM), Mougins, France, 26 February–19 June 2016
Dragons and Mythical Creatures, Draguignan Museum of Folk Arts and Traditions, Draguignan, France, 16 May–31 August 2025
Bibliography: Pierre Bergé & Associés, Archaeology, Paris, 26 May 2011, lot 214
C. Dauphin, Animals in the Ancient World. The Levett Bestiary, Levett Collection Series 2, France, 2014, pp. 46 and 90
C. Dauphin, Animals in the Ancient World. The Levett Bestiary, Levett Collection Series 2, France, 2016, p. 23, fig. 20 and p. 80
A silver Achaemenid handle in the form of a winged bull,
Early 4th century BC.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
You may also like