Central Asia, Bactria, ca. 2500 to 2250 BCE. One of my favorites! Skillfully carved from grey-green schist, this is an ornately incised, shallow, concave vessel, with a high relief head of a raptor with outstretched wings rising from one side of the dish's interior. The interior of the bowl has six deeply incised, leaf-like forms that radiate outward from the bird. The underside has an incised motif of a flower with two layers of petals. Polished stone vessels are common grave goods from this time period. Based on ancient evidence, we believe that the Bactrian concept of feminine beauty involved cosmetically enhanced dark eyes; a small dish like this probably held something used to create that effect. It may have once had an ivory lid. Given their impressive aesthetic qualities as well as the fact that archaeologists have typically found them in temple, grave, and palace sites, dishes like this one must have been regarded as precious objects themselves. Size: 2.375" L x 3.375" W x .875" H (6 cm x 8.6 cm x 2.2 cm)

Provenance: private Davis collection, Houston, Texas, USA; ex-Bonhams London Antiquities Auction, 8 May, 2013, lot 206; ex-private Linde collection, Germany, acquired prior to 1970

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#132805

Minor surface wear commensurate with age, with small chips and encrusted deposits. One side of the rim has a small loss.