it is a little difficult to discern the exact identity of this quadruped: it is most likely a sheep or a horse. It hardly seems to matter, for its naive energy and lack of  More »

it is a little difficult to discern the exact identity of this quadruped: it is most likely a sheep or a horse. It hardly seems to matter, for its naive energy and lack of specific details add to its appeal. Such animals were probably turned out in great numbers near temple sites to be offered as gifts to the local deities. Holding its simple form today, we wonder who it was first set it upon the altar and what they dared ask for in return. - (Z.0077)Origin: Beir Ulla, Hebron, Israel Circa: 1200 BC to 600 BC Dimensions: 1.875" (4.8cm) high x .875" (2.2cm) wide Catalogue: V1 Collection: Biblical Style: Iron Age Medium: Bronze   « Less

Discovered together, this case of votive figures was offered centuries ago to win the favor of some ancient god. The human figure, arms held out in an attitude of prayer, was  More »

Discovered together, this case of votive figures was offered centuries ago to win the favor of some ancient god. The human figure, arms held out in an attitude of prayer, was meant to be stuck upright in the earth. The animals--bulls, rams, a donkey--represent the livestock considered the most precious sacrifices to the gods. The hopes, the wishes and the dreams that these small votives represent have been forgotten in the mists of time. Yet, we somehow understand that the blessings man sought millennia ago have altered little through the years. - (Z.0268) Origin: Jericho, Israel Circa: 1900 BC to 1600 BC Dimensions: 1.75" (4.4cm) high x 2.375" (6.0cm) wide Catalogue: V1 Collection: Biblical Style: Middle Bronze Age Medium: Bronze   « Less

Origin: Sinai, Egypt Circa: 1900 BC to 1300 BC Medium: Faience According to Egyptologists, such beads were made on an axis, probably of thread, which would burn up during  More »

Origin: Sinai, Egypt Circa: 1900 BC to 1300 BC Medium: Faience According to Egyptologists, such beads were made on an axis, probably of thread, which would burn up during firing, leaving a hole. Disc, ring and tubular beads were made by coating the axis with the unfired body-paste, rolling the cylinder to an even diameter on a flat surface, and then scoring it with a knife into sections of the desired length. Other shapes, such as ball beads, were rolled between the hands and perforated while still wet with a stiff point such as a wire needle. The beads were then dried, coated with glaze (if the glaze had not already been mixed with the paste), and fired. The firing process often gave the beads a beautiful translucent quality. The majority of faience beads are blue or green in color, but black, red, yellow and white ones were also produced, especially in the New Egyptian Kingdom. - (SB.0412)   « Less

Bulls have long been regarded as a sacred creature, a symbol for fierce strength and potency. In ancient Egypt, the Apis was a bull considered to be the divine reincarnation  More »

Bulls have long been regarded as a sacred creature, a symbol for fierce strength and potency. In ancient Egypt, the Apis was a bull considered to be the divine reincarnation of the gods Osiris or Ptah. Jupiter took the form of a bull when he abducted Europa. Even today children are born under the astrological sign of Taurus and matadors continue to test their bravery in bullfights. The Old Testament tells the story of Moses smashing the Ten Commandments. After God spoke to him on Mt. Sinai, Moses returned to discover the Israelites worshipping the false idol of a golden calf. Presumably, this statue of a bull is such an idol. Forged from bronze, a metal that during the time of its creation was more valuable than gold, this extraordinary work predates the time of Moses. The stories of the Bible were a direct reaction against the polytheistic, pagan beliefs represented by this statue. Most likely, given its diminutive nature, this bull was a household object to be worshipped in private. Its survival is in itself remarkable. How many countless such icons were destroyed or melted down for their precious metals? This masterpiece is a relic from one of the most revolutionary epochs in history, a reminder of the pagan beliefs our modern monotheistic theologies reacted against. No longer will false gods like this bull be idolized, for a new path towards enlightenment had been discovered. - (FZ.372)Origin: Israel Circa: 3300 BC to 2300 BC Dimensions: 3" (7.6cm) high x 1.5" (3.8cm) wide Collection: Biblical Style: Bronze Age Medium: Bronze   « Less

Forged from bronze, a metal that, during the time of its creation, was more valuable than gold, this extraordinary work predates the time of Moses. The rich green patina  More »

Forged from bronze, a metal that, during the time of its creation, was more valuable than gold, this extraordinary work predates the time of Moses. The rich green patina attests to the bronze’s high copper content, again reiterating the preciousness of this material. The earliest stories of the Bible were a direct reaction against the polytheistic, pagan beliefs represented by this statue. Found in Canaan, this statue probably depicts the ancient warrior god Baal, making it one of the earliest examples of a deity cast in the lost wax technique. Most likely, given its diminutive nature, this statue was a household object to be worshipped in private. Its survival is in itself remarkable. How many countless such icons were destroyed or melted down for their precious metals or pagan ideology? This masterpiece is a relic from one of the most revolutionary epochs in history, a reminder of the pagan beliefs our modern monotheistic theologies reacted against. No longer will false gods like this statue be idolized, for a new path towards enlightenment had been discovered. - (FZ.373)Origin: Israel Circa: 3300 BC to 2300 BC Dimensions: 4" (10.2cm) high x 1.25" (3.2cm) wide Collection: Biblical Style: Bronze Age Medium: Bronze   « Less

Once having lived east and southeast of Palestine, the Nabateans were an ancient Arabic people who maintained their independence from 312 B.C. to 106 A.D., at which time they  More »

Once having lived east and southeast of Palestine, the Nabateans were an ancient Arabic people who maintained their independence from 312 B.C. to 106 A.D., at which time they finally submitted to Roman rule. This very charming camel comes from the beautiful city of Petra in Southwest Jordan. Though the animal itself was, and of course still is, prolific in the Middle East; depictions of it in ancient art are rare. Resting on an oblong base, with legs folded comfortably underneath, this camel in repose is simple in form and quite realistic. It may have been designed as a lid; and yet the textured bottom suggests a more practical function, perhaps used for sanding rough surfaces. It is particularly delightful to see represented an animal that was so important to a people--in this case one that assisted the fiercely independent Nabatean people in maintaining their freedom for so many centuries. - (PF.5264)Origin: Petra, Jordan Circa: 300 BC to 100 AD Dimensions: 3.25" (8.3cm) high x 1.75" (4.4cm) wide Collection: Biblical Style: Nabatean Medium: Bronze   « Less

For the lover of antiquities, the term bronze carries a number of meanings. In the 19th century, a Danish museum employee decided to organize the museum's collection by  More »

For the lover of antiquities, the term bronze carries a number of meanings. In the 19th century, a Danish museum employee decided to organize the museum's collection by dividing the artifacts into time periods based on man's changing tool types. Thus, the Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age have come to represent three distinct time periods in man's technological and cultural history. When man discovered that by alloying tin with copper he could create a material substance much stronger than copper, the resulting bronze technology changed many aspects of his culture. One monumental change was in the weaponry, fine examples represented here in this splendid dagger, powerful axe head and arrowheads. Expert craftsmanship combine with an aesthetic eye to create weapons that are lifted into the realm of art. Their dynamic power and spirited essence can be seen and felt through their exquisite design and tactile surfaces. These sculptural weapons touch a chord deeply buried but never forgotten, common to all mankind. - (PF.6291)Origin: Israel Circa: 1200 BC to 900 BC Dimensions: 19" (48.3cm) wide Collection: Biblical Style: Iron Age Medium: Bronze   « Less

The bullae was used as a voucher originally attached to strings that once wrapped a document or letter. Then it was often broken and discarded, once the document was opened.  More »

The bullae was used as a voucher originally attached to strings that once wrapped a document or letter. Then it was often broken and discarded, once the document was opened. The impression of a seal, preserved on a bullae suggest that the seal functioned as validation of documents,and as a guarantee of exchanged goods and services both in an administrative context and in private society. Private seals and impressions, distinguished by a single motif sometimes accompanied by an inscription, or an iconographic pattern, reflects the cultural and religious traditions of ancient Israel. This Lead bullae, due to the symbol on it, clearly was used by a high priest, or one of the leaders of the wars against Rome. - (FJ.0438)Origin: Israel Circa: 100 BC to 100 AD Collection: Biblical Style: Roman Period Medium: Lead   « Less

the kingdom of Saba is better known as the Biblica Sheba. Biblical accounts speak of the wealth of this ancient civilization of gold traders and merchants, and modern  More »

the kingdom of Saba is better known as the Biblica Sheba. Biblical accounts speak of the wealth of this ancient civilization of gold traders and merchants, and modern archaeological excavations confirm these reports. This magnificent bronze sculpture of a bull is but one example of the luxurious nature of Sabean art. The bull is one of the more popular animal subjects in the Sabean ouevre. He stands frontally on all four feet on a rectangular stepped base. The head is strongly sculpted, with a raised bone structure between the curved horns. Behind the horns are upright ears, the eyes have heavy brows, the genitals are prominent, and the tail falls straight down. The solid stance is characteristic of the local Sabean style. The bull has been worshipped since the dawn of civilization as a symbol of strength and power. Ancient Israelis worshipped a golden cow before they were converted to monotheism by Moses. Ancient Egyptian mythology and the Hindu religion both hold the bull to be a sacred animal. Zeus was known to take on the guise of a bull. We might wonder what god this bronze bull represents? - (X.0026)Origin: Yemen Circa: 700 BC to 400 BC Dimensions: 7.75" (19.7cm) high x 8.625" (21.9cm) wide Collection: Biblical Style: Sabean Medium: Bronze   « Less

Origin: Sinai, Egypt Circa: 600 BC to 300 BC Dimensions: 3.5" (8.9cm) high x 5.375" (13.7cm) wide Catalogue: V1 Collection: Egyptian Antiquities Style: Late Dynastic  More »

Origin: Sinai, Egypt Circa: 600 BC to 300 BC Dimensions: 3.5" (8.9cm) high x 5.375" (13.7cm) wide Catalogue: V1 Collection: Egyptian Antiquities Style: Late Dynastic Period Medium: Bronze This thick-snouted fish with a long dorsal fin, pairs of ventral fins front and back, and a bipartite tail is a member of the Mormyrus genus, more commonly termed the Oxyrhynchus fish in Egyptological literature. The more common name of this fish is that of the village of Oxyrhynchus situated in the Egyptian Faiyum, the agriculturally-rich region to the southwest of modern Cairo. Hollow cast in bronze with the eyes originally inlaid, the fish rests on a rectangular base. The fish wears as an attribute the horns of a cow fronted by a sun disc. The ancient Egyptian traditions which grew up around the Oxyrhynchus fish are varied and complex. The best known, preserved by Plutarch, a Greek priest of the oracle of Apollo at Delphi writing in the second century A.D., in chapter 72 of his monumental opus De Iside recounts how the citizens of Oxyrhynchus engaged in a bloody confrontation with the citizens of neighboring Kynopolis because the citizens of Kynopolis ate the Oxyrhynchus fish. That account in Plutarch differs from the two ancient Egyptian accounts of this fish, both of which are associated with the god Osiris. As one recalls, Osiris and his brother, Seth, became embroiled in a conflict for power with the result that Seth triumphed over Osiris. In so doing, he dismembered the body of Osiris and scattered it far and wide. Isis, the dutiful wife and, incidentally, sister of Osiris, gathered up the pieces and reassembled them, but not before the Oxyrhynchus fish ate his phallus. The phallus was necessary for the posthumous conception of Osiris’s son and heir, Horus. In another version of the myth, the Oxyrhynchus fish emerged from the wounds of Osiris himself. Whatever the truth in these matters might be, the Oxyrhynchus fish was inextricably associated with the god Osiris and revered by the ancient Egyptians. That reverence explains why this fish wears as attributes the sun disc and cow horns, associating it with Isis in her role as the reviver of her husband Osiris.   « Less