Greek Cyclades Archaic hippocamp seal

G23

£2,000.00

Available

A very rare lentoid disc shaped bone seal decorated with a figure of a winged hippocamp.

The style of the carving suggests it may be related to the workshop of the “Blind Dolphin Master” (see below).

The hippocampus or sea-horse was a mythological creature believed to have the head and upper body of a horse and the tail of a fish, often combined with wings.

Culture
Greek, Cyclades, possibly Melos, c. 600 BC

Condition
Intact as shown, only minor peripheral losses

Size
1.7 cms diameter

Provenance
Ex. private collection, Bayeux, France; collected before 1940.

For comparable examples and a brief description of the output of the “Blind Dolphin Master” please see: Greek Gems and Finger-Rings, Sir John Boardman, pages 120-121 and plates 235-242.

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