Page 111 - South East Asian Art, December 4th 2020 Galerie Zacke Galerie Zacke

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AN eXTReMely RARe Pyu bANded eye AgATe ‘FROg’ TAlIsMAN
Pyu city-states, 2nd-10th century. The opaque stone of a black color with white
and bluish grey bands, finely carved as a small frog, its legs compactly placed
as if it were about to jump. Pierced through the frog’s head and behind for
suspension as a pendant.
This piece was personally examined by Burmese American archaeologist and
gemologist Terence Tan, a leading expert in Pyu art and Burmese gemstones,
and Hungarian gemologist Dr. József Takács. Their analysis finds that the stone is
an extremely rare natural banded eye agate and the talisman is original, ancient,
cut by hand with carving, chiseling, boring and grinding. The color is original and
natural. The stone has been cleaned and re-polished by hand and its surface is
smooth and shiny. There are no traces of later dying in the recesses of the stone.
The holes are ancient, handmade, irregular, and funnel-shaped. A certificate
signed by Dr. Zelnik attesting to the above will be handed to the winning bidder
upon request.
Provenance: Ex-Collection of The Zelnik István Southeast Asian Gold Museum.
Institutional art collection in Belgium, acquired from the above.
condition: Very good condition with minor traces of age and wear.
Weight: 22.1 g
Dimensions: Size 1.5 x 3.5 cm
Literature comparison: A similar talisman is published in Burmese Gemstone
Amulets and Talismans Volume 1 (part of the series From the Collection of Dr.
Zelnik), pages 54/55, Budapest 2016.

estimate euR 4,000
Starting price EUr 2,000

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