Stamp with Bird Finial
Northwestern Iran, 2nd Millenium B.C.
Bronze, Height: 2 1/4 inches.

Used as a stamp to seal things and mark ownership, this bronze was created for the elite of one of the worlds early civilizations.  But while utilitarian in purpose the design and bird sculpture are sublime in its simplicity and redacted elegance. Its stylized minimism reminds one of Cycladic figures, which this is contemporaneous with.  It is a rare and important object from a time about which little is yet known.