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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1995.1139
Title
Plaque in the Form of a Winged, Horned Quadruped
Classification
Plaques
Work Type
plaque
Date
1st Millennium CE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Asia
Culture
Sino-Scythian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/286785

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Mixed copper alloy
Technique
Cast
Dimensions
7.9 x 11.1 x 0.4 cm (3 1/8 x 4 3/8 x 1/8 in.)
Technical Details

Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Mixed Copper Alloy:
Cu, 75.98; Sn, 3.9; Pb, 13.84; Zn, 4.01; Fe, 0.76; Ni, 0.11; Ag, 0.06; Sb, 0.4; As, 0.88; Bi, 0.044; Co, 0.019; Au, less than 0.02; Cd, less than 0.002
J. Riederer

Technical Observations: The patina is black with spots of red. The surface is well preserved. It is slightly rough, but this could be the original condition.

The simple, flat, outline design, with raised detail lines and a flat, plain reverse, indicate that a durable model was used to make an impression in a clay casting mold. The raised lines could have been cut directly in this mold to add relief detail, and the rough texture of the lines supports this. Molten metal could have been poured into a one- or two-piece mold.


Henry Lie (submitted 2012)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Nelson Goodman, Weston, MA, gift; to the Harvard University Art Museums, 1995.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Nelson Goodman
Accession Year
1995
Object Number
1995.1139
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Descriptions

Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums
This plaque shows a creature, perhaps a winged horse or a griffin, in profile walking left (1). The animal’s features are sharp and pointed. The plaque is stylized, and the few details are rendered using sharply raised lines. The animal has a point or horn indicated in the center of the brow. Ears, or perhaps a short mane, are indicated on the back of the head. The animal seems to have a long, thin nose rendered above the mouth; its eye is thin and pointed under an arched brow. A wave-shape with curving lines on the interior wing curls above the head. The animal’s stance is slightly crouched, with the front lower and the rump higher. All four legs are represented, and three to four separate toes are indicated on each leg. The animal has a long tail with a series of short, curved lines filling the interior. The legs and tail are all connected to a slightly irregular groundline with no internal features. The back is flat and featureless. This may have been an applique or other form of decorative plaque.

NOTES:

1. Compare a very close parallel in A. Salmony, Sino-Siberian Art in the Collection of C. T. Loo (Paris, 1933) pl. 43.5. This piece either formed a pair with the Harvard example (they are mirror images of each other) or was created by the same artist. Compare ibid., pl. 43.6, another similar plaque, although it represents a different animal, perhaps by the same artist. See also Treasures of the Eurasian Steppes: Animal Art from 800 BC to 200 AD, Ariadne Galleries (New York, 1998) no. 168, a plaque of similar style but with loops at the bottom that connect to a chain.


Lisa M. Anderson

Subjects and Contexts

  • Ancient Bronzes

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu