A GRECO PERSIAN CHALCEDONY SCARABOID OF A GRIFFIN, CIRCA 5TH-4TH CENTURY B.C. A GRECO PERSIAN CHALCEDONY SCARABOID OF A GRIFFIN, CIRCA 5TH-4TH CENTURY B.C.

A GRECO PERSIAN CHALCEDONY SCARABOID OF A GRIFFIN, CIRCA 5TH-4TH CENTURY B.C.

Reference: ART600580

Engraved with a winged griffin at bay, having four paws, with a spiked crest and upright ears, the beak slightly open, the tail downwards.
Size: 3.1 cm. by 2.8 cm. by 1.3 cm.
Weight: 17.50 grams.

CONDITION
A small missing fragment on the left of the seal has been restored with polymer resin, which does not affect the design. Another small chip has been similarly restored on the right side in front of the head of the griffin.

PROVENANCE
Purchased from London art gallery before 2015, English art market since 1980s.

CATALOGUE NOTE
Similar sold at Christies, auction 19992, Antiquities, 12 October 2021, lot 48, and auction 2491, Ancient Jewllery, 7th December 2011, lot 353

LITERATURE
H. Carnegie, ed., Catalogue of the Collection of Antique Gems formed by James Ninth Earl of Southesk K.T., London, 1908, p. 30, no. B12, pl. 3. J. Boardman and D. Scarisbrick, The Ralph Harari Collection of Finger Rings, London, 1977, p. 14, no. 5. J. Boardman, Greek Gems and Finger Rings, London, 2001, p. 431, no. 313 (as Greek, Common Style). H.C.L. Wiegandt, Die griechischen Siegel der klassischen Zeit: ikonographischer Vergleich, Frankfurt am Main, 2009, p. 202, no. Fbbc34, pl. CXLVII.