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A metal figure of a horned bull with a large hump coming off its back behind its shoulders

This is a metal figure depicting a bull with horns and a large hump extending off its back from between its shoulders. The metal is dark in some spots but is mostly discolored green with a rough texture. There is little fine detail visible on the figure except for some detailing of the eyes, nose, and mouth on the face. There is a smaller hump where the tail would be.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1978.504
Title
Zebu (Humped Bull)
Classification
Sculpture
Work Type
statuette, sculpture
Date
early 10th century BCE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Asia, Iran
Period
Iron Age II
Culture
Iranian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/303711

Location

Location
Level 3, Room 3440, Ancient Mediterranean and Middle Eastern Art, Ancient Middle Eastern Art in the Service of Kings
View this object's location on our interactive map

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Mixed copper alloy
Technique
Cast, lost-wax process
Dimensions
6.3 x 7.5 x 2.8 cm (2 1/2 x 2 15/16 x 1 1/8 in.)
Technical Details

Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Mixed Copper Alloy:
Cu, 89.99; Sn, 3.97; Pb, 1.77; Zn, 4.08; Fe, 0.04; Ni, 0.08; Ag, 0.01; Sb, 0.07; As, less than 0.10; Bi, less than 0.025; Co, less than 0.01; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, less than 0.001
J. Riederer

Chemical Composition: XRF data from Tracer
Alloy: Mixed Copper Alloy
Alloying Elements: copper, tin, zinc
Other Elements: lead, iron, nickel, silver
K. Eremin, January 2014

Technical Observations: The patina is green with areas of red. The object is a solid lost-wax cast. The body is pierced in the center. There is no evidence as to whether the wax model was formed in a mold or directly.


Tony Sigel (submitted 1999)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Private collection, gift; to the Fogg Art Museum, 1978.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Anonymous Gift
Accession Year
1978
Object Number
1978.504
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums
This solidly built zebu is portrayed with a slightly greater degree of detail than 1969.177.24. Viewed frontally, its central hump rises up behind the head, framed by the inwardly curving arc of the round, pointed horns. In profile, the hump appears almost wing-like, extending high above the body and curving slightly backwards. The head is roughly triangular in form, terminating in a blunt muzzle with a horizontal striation to mark the mouth. No eyes are indicated, but small ears protrude from the sides of the head just beneath the horns. A dewlap, hanging from the throat, creates a diagonal profile. Through the body runs a small hole, just large enough for wire to pass through. Male genitalia are represented on the underside, prominently visible in profile. The rump and hindquarters are portrayed as extending unnaturally beyond the top and sides of the body. A short tail, outlined by a groove, is depicted in relief.

This horned and humped quadruped figure, along with 1969.177.24, represents a mature zebu, a domesticated species of Asiatic cattle (Bovis indicus) that can reach up to 10 feet in height. Zebus, used primarily as draft animals, are known for their resistance to heat, pestilence, and insects. Commonly used in Africa and the Asian monsoon belt, they are ideally suited to the Caspian region of Iran, which, situated between the Elburz Mountains and the sea, is a fertile lowland whose warm, sultry climate supports yearlong cultivation.

Copper alloy zebu figurines and pendants have been excavated from graves dated to the late second to early first millennia BCE at the site of Marlik in northwest Iran, which is just south of the Caspian Sea (1). Of all the types of animal figurines found at this site, zebus are most numerously represented. Some were found in pairs in association with model plows, alluding to their use as draft animals. A number of large hollow ceramic “vessels” in the form of zebus were also found in the graves. If these vessels are interpreted as ritual objects, they suggest zebus may have had some sacred association.

The motivations for depositing these figurines in graves and their possible symbolic meaning can only be inferred. The exaggeration of potent features such as the horns, hump, and genitalia may refer to power and strength. Some ceramic figurines of rams and stags are also given a hump, revealing the fascination with, if not the culturally significant value, of this feature. Zebus’ heartiness in harsh environmental conditions and their clear association with agriculture may suggest that they are linked to notions of earthly fecundity.

In addition to finds at the site of Marlik, comparable collections of zebu figurines and pendants have reportedly been retrieved throughout the western Caspian region of Iran, Russia, and Azerbaijan (2). An apparently shared tradition of iconography may point to a more or less cohesive cultural zone based on a shared environment in which zebus played a prominent role.

NOTES:

1. See E. O. Negahban, Marlik: The Complete Excavation Report, University Museum Monograph 87 (Philadelphia, 1996) 126-29, pls. 42-44.

2. See E. B. Terrance, “Some Recent Finds from Northwest Persia,” Syria 39 (1962): 212-224, esp. 212-13.


Amy Gansell

Publication History

  • Susanne Ebbinghaus, ed., Ancient Bronzes through a Modern Lens: Introductory Essays on the Study of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes, Harvard Art Museum and Yale University Press (Cambridge, MA, 2014), p. 81

Exhibition History

  • 32Q: 3440 Middle East, Harvard Art Museums, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Subjects and Contexts

  • Google Art Project
  • Ancient Bronzes

Related Works

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