 |
|
Home |
|
Nice Sasanian Stamp Seal of a Bird browse these categories for related items... All Items: Near East: Sassanian: Pre AD 1000: item #586152
$140 |
|
||||
|
Long an opponent of the Roman and Byzantine empires, the Sasanian empire (AD 224-642) was the last independent Persian monarchy before the Arab conquest of Western Asia in the 7th Century AD. The Sasanian Dynasty began with a regional ruler in the province of Fars in southwest Iran, whose empire eventually stretched from India to the Black Sea after defeating the last of the Parthian emperors. The state religion was Zoroastrianism and many seals bear testament to the importance of this faith in their art.
This seal is rendered in rich, red carnelian. The base features a carving of a squat bird with linear feathers and a curved beak. A dashed design element partially encircles the design. My best guess on this one is a pheasant; see the online collection, Sasanian Seals from the Collection of the Late Edward Gans, at UC Berkeley, #30.S.07: http://ecai.berkeley.edu/sasanianweb/docs/sasanianseals.html AGE: 400-642 A.D. CONDITION: Intact and nice. DIMENSIONS: 1.1 cm long |
|||||
