Stamp-cylinder seal: Royal hero grasping human-headed winged lion (lamassu, sphinx) on either side (cylinder image) – Head of Bes (stamp image)
| Kategória | Cylinder Seals |
| Description of the seal image | The scene is framed by a deep line border at the top. The royal hero grasps a rampant human-headed winged lion (lamassu, sphinx) on either side, each by the throat. All figures wear dentate crowns (cidarises). The hero is clothed in a Persian garment (court robe). Behind the rampant beasts is a tall plant, possibly a coniferous tree. There may be a small bird perched on its top. The stamp image depicts the head of Bes in frontal view. |
| Figures, motifs/symbols |
- bird: uncertain - Bes: in stamp image, head only, in frontal view - borderline: deep, line border at the top - human-headed winged lions (lamassus, sphinxes) (2): rampant, heads turned backwards, clawing at the royal hero, wearing dentate crowns (cidarises) - royal hero: bearded, wearing a dentate crown (cidaris) and Persian clothing (court robe) - stylised plant: tall, coniferous tree |
| Subcategory | cylinder seal stamp cylinder |
| Collection | N/A, formerly kept in the Erlenmeyer Collection |
| Culture | Achaemenid |
| Provenance | surfaced at Sotheby's (London), 09–07–1992, 126 lot 220 |
| First occurence | 1992 |
| Dimensions (mm): height, diameter | h: 34, d: 10 |
| Material and features | "agate" |
| Style | linear |
| Scene | contest, singular |
| Bibliography |
Sotheby's (London), 09–07–1992, 126 lot 220. Sotheby's (London), 09–07–1992: Western Asiatic Cylinder Seals and Antiquities from the Erlenmeyer Collection (Part I). |