Catalog: Antiques: Regional Art: Ancient World: Near Eastern: Metalwork (142)

Lovely bronze battle axe, Ancient Near East, early 2nd. millenium BC.

Finely made battle axe with a long enforced and narrow blade with a ridge at the top and an elaborately made socket in a zoomorphic shape with a broad decorated backplate.

Size: 114 mm. long and 67 mm. tall.

Condition: Very fine, intact with a rough uncleaned encrusted green patina over beautiful brown and red surfaces. Can be cleaned.

Ex...

A nice tanged leaf shaped bronze dagger from the ancient near east, Caspian Sea Area, Mid-late Bronze age, 2nd. mill. BC.

Very broad, leaf-shaped blade with raised central midrib and a long tang - circa half the length of the blade, with a bend at the top, for better fastening to the wooden handle.

Length: c. 20 cm

Condition: Good Very fine, fine green patina.

Ex. Private Collection in Denmark, formed in the 1990's.

A very interesting and uncleaned metal seal in bronze or a silver alloy, Mesopotamia, Uruk-Jemdet Nasr period, 4th.-3rd. mill. BC.

Finely engraved with dots in a symethric pattern.

Size: 19-20 mm. tall and 9 mm. wide.

Condition: Good Very fine or better...

Wonderful quality cast bronze whetstone handle. Luristan culture, 9th-7th century BC. A large handle measuring c. 12 cm. in length. A cast bronze implement handle with rounded socket to hold a whetstone for sharpening knifes and swords.

In the form of a three-dimensional crouching ibex with long horns curling over its back. The animal is fully rendered with limbs curled under its body and careful attention paid to the details of head and horns...

A fine set of three bronze and copper daggers, East Caspian Sea area, 3rd.-2nd. mill. BC.

The set includes one extremely fine dagger of later fabric, probably 1200-800 BC with a long bend tang.

Size: 177 mm., 173 mm., and 147 mm.

Condition: Choice VF to Extremely fine, uncleaned with sandy deposits.

Ex. Danish private Collection, aquired at the Copenhagen antiques market in the 1990s.

A large and finely patinated silver omphalos libation bowl, Medes / early Achaemenid, 9th.-8th. century BC.

A stunning silver bowl of an early type with relief decoration in form of humps and central omphalos.

Size: 16,5 cm. in diameter.

Condition: Choice and intact with small closed scratch and two minor chips, otherwise superb. Attractive bluish-black patina.

Ex. Private collection, aquired in 1976 from Axel Weber, Cologne, Germany.

An interesting a rare cylinder seal in bronze, Eastern Mesopotamia / Greater Persia, c. 2nd. mill. BC.

A very attractive cylinder carved with animals walking on a decorated border below.

Size: 35-36 mm. tall and c. 8 mm. thick...

A superb bronze mace head decorated with faceted knobs around the swollen head and flanked by grooved bands with a tubular shaft, later bronzeage, ca. 1200-800 BC.

Size: Ca. 10,5 cm.

Condition: Superb for type, wonderful even green patina.

Ex. Danish Collection of ancient weapons, bought at the Danish Antiquities market in the 1980-90s.

Interesting and scarce bronze dagger from Greater Persia, c. 3rd. millenium BC.

Among the earliest types of bronze daggers, probably dating deep in the 3rd. millenium BC. No hole for the rivet and with a slightly raised midsection. The upper part of both sides of the blade finely engraved with a heering pattern!

Size: c. 21 cm.

Condition: Very fine, intact with rough uncleaned patina.

Ex...

Attractive and interesting bronze seal where a Lion is fighting a Bull with long horns, Neo-Babylonian c. 8th.-6th. century BC.

The seal is round and looks to have been made without handle or drill.

Size: 17 mm. in diameter.

Condition: Very fine, intact with much patina!

Added to the Oberländer collection in 2002...

A large Zoomorphic style bronze plaque with a loop for attachment on the back, Scythian c. 700-400 BC.

Very attractive the a beast on top of a large spiral; in bronze alloy with some silver content.

Size: 55 mm. tall and 51 mm. wide.

Condition: Nice VF, intact with a black patina.

Ex. Hafnia Coins, ancient coin dealer in Copenhagen, inventory from c. 1990s.

A fine and substantial bronze stamp seal with tall handle and a round base, engraved with an interesting archaic image, Ancient Near East, likely Levantine, c. late 2nd.-1st. millenium BC.

Size: 23 mm. tall and 21-22 mm. wide.

Condition: Good Very Fine, olive patina.

Provenance: Gustav Oberländer (1926-2012), Oberländer aquired his massive and important collection between 1985 - 2000s, bought at reputable dealers and from old collections. Gustav Oberländer sp...

Interesting and massive bronze ring with standing human on the Bezel, Amlash / South Caspian Sea area, c. early 2nd. millenium BC.

An unsually large ring for it's type. Normally these are decorated with applied patterns on a spiral - in this case the ringmaker also found space for a standing human figure with a weapon or a staff in his left hand, likely a mythical figure or a warrior. Lovely red and blue-green patina!

Size: The round bezel measure 27 mm. in diameter and the...

Extremely fine specimen of the earliest metal daggers known, BMAC / Indus, Chalcolithic period, 4th.-3rd. millenium BC.

Interesting and collectable daggers. Flat, leafshaped blade and very long, straight tang.

Size: 20,8 cm long.

Condition: Extremely fine, choice green patina and great metal. Uncleaned with earthern deposits.

Ex. Danish private Collection, aquired at the Copenhagen antiques market in the 1990s.

An interesting lot of 4 bronze stamp seals with geomethric bases, Mesopotamia, BMAC and later, 3rd.-1st. mill. BC.

Comes with Gustav Oberländers Identification cards and from his collection.

Size: Up to c. 19 mm. Choice condition, with nice green patinas.

Provenance: Gustav Oberländer (1926-2012), Oberländer aquired his massive and important collection between 1985 - 2000s, bought at reputable dealers and from old collections. Gustav Oberländer specialized in...

A massive, solid cast silver bracelet of the finest workmanship of the Achaimenid period, 5th-4th century BC.

The bracelet or armring would have been made for a very highranking / rich costumer in antiquity, since these are usually hollowcast, when this thickness and size. The silver bracelet with faux-twist and twisted wire details to the body, finials with serpent- or Lion head detailing.

Weight: ca. 410 grams.

Condition: Superb uncleaned condition, retain...

A fine specimen of the earliest metal daggers known, BMAC / Indus, Chalcolithic period, 4th.-3rd. millenium BC.

Interesting and collectable dagger! Leafshaped blade without ribs and a very long tang.

Size: 19,8 cm. long.

Condition: Extremely fine, choice green patina and great metal with earthern deposits.

Ex. Danish private Collection, aquired at the Copenhagen antiques market in the 1990s.

A super lot of three ancient tanged Bronze daggers from Ancient Near East. Types of the 3rd.-2nd. mill. BC.

The lot consist of:
1) A choice and beautiful dagger, c. 26 cm, long with high shoulders and a prominent central midrib, 2nd. mill. BC. On this dagger you can see where the handle of bone or wood once was - very interesting!
2) A nice smaller dagger with rounded shoulders, 3rd. millenium BC, 17,8 cm. long.
3) A 23,1 cm. bronze dagger with early type of p...