34 - A PAIR OF SASANIAN ROCK CRYSTAL DECORATED ELLIPSOID STAMP SEALS (2)

A PAIR OF SASANIAN ROCK CRYSTAL DECORATED ELLIPSOID STAMP SEALS (2) CIRCA 300-500 AD Each of ellipsoid form with a large central suspension hole, the domed exterior carved with recessed roundels, the flat oval faces engraved in intaglio, one with a leaping horse, the other with a standing bird. Cf. Catalogue of the Western Asiatic Seals in the British Museum, Stamp Seals (1969), n/a. Size/dimensions: faces 1.80cm to 2.00cm x 1.84cm to 2.22cm; 2.27cm to 2.66cm overall Gross weight: 25.25g (total) The seals are offered in very good condition. They show moderate wear with some surface pitting from weathering and tumbling. Otherwise both stable and structurally sound. Provenance From the contents of a private residence, Kent The Sasanian dynasty ruled Iran and much of the Near East from AD 224, when Ardashir I overthrew the last Parthian king, until the Arab conquests of the mid-seventh century. Seals were used at every level of Sasanian society: to authenticate documents, close containers and secure goods, and to mark the identity and rank of their owners. Thousands of clay sealings recovered from administrative sites show how widely they were used, and many seals were also worn as personal ornaments and valued as amulets. Most Sasanian seals were cut in hardstones such as carnelian, chalcedony, agate, jasper and rock crystal, and took two principal forms: the ellipsoid, pierced through its length and engraved on a flat oval face, and the dome, with a smaller flat base. The subjects form a rich repertoire. Animals dominate: the humped zebu bull, the lion, the boar, which was associated with Verethragna, the god of victory, the ibex, gazelle, horse and birds. Some scenes, such as a lion springing upon a bull, continue imagery known in Iran since the Achaemenid period. Alongside them appear portrait busts, mythological and religious figures such as Gay?mard, the first man of Zoroastrian tradition, and abstract devices that served as personal emblems. Many seals carry short inscriptions in Middle Persian (Pahlavi) script, naming the owner or expressing a pious wish.