Asset number
23322001
Description
Gilded silver handle of a vase showing a leaping ibex; the hind legs rise from a flat gilded plate with incurving sides, the forelegs are flexed and rest against a curved bar originally attached to the rim of a vessel; the hair on the body of the ibex is represented by broad gilt bands, parted along the middle of the back and breast, by gilt semi-circles upon the shoulders, and by close curls, symmetrically disposed, on the forehead; the long beard is also gilded; the gilded horns are flat on the inner sides and divided into six sections by transverse raised bands, each of three parallel lines; beneath these runs a single vertical band following the contour of the horn; gilded circles in low relief are visible amidst the gilded hair on the shoulders and on the thighs; drop-shaped gilt figures with bifurcated ends decorate the forelegs above the knees; the ears, eyes and hoofs are all gilded; the ribs are indicated by a series of parallel channels on either flank; on the outer side of the plate from which the rear legs rise is an engraved palmette; the body of the figure is hollow and there is a rectangular aperture on the underside.
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