- Museum number
- 123949
- Title
- Series: Oxus Treasure
- Description
-
Rectangular gold plaque: with embossed and chased decoration showing a male figure facing right, in so-called "Median dress", wearing a belted tunic with two vertical stripes with similar bands along the bottom and at the shoulders, hood (from which his hair projects above and below), trousers, long boots and a soft cap with neck-guard. His chin is covered. He wears, from his belt, an 'akinakes' with a lateral projection at the upper end, and a cinquefoil chape. The lower part of the scabbard is secured by a cord running around his leg. He carries a 'barsom' in his right hand. His tunic is decorated with bands of embroidery or applied material. Two such bands run vertically down the length of the tunic, and there are further bands at the wrist and forming an inverted T-shape on the upper arm.
- Production date
- 5thC BC-4thC BC
- Dimensions
-
Weight: 77.00 - 82.73 grammes (heavier wgt cited by Curtis and Searight)
-
Height: 15 centimetres
-
Width: 7.50 centimetres
-
Depth: 0.10 centimetres
- Curator's comments
- The sheet used for this is thicker than other examples in the OT and the decoration is of a considerably different standard to the other pieces. The object has been regarded by Professor Lolita Nehru as possibly evidence of local Bactrian production, on the basis of the style of the face, which she considers to be rather individualised with a faint trace of portraiture, and different to the highly stylised formulaic representations on the Persepolis façades ("Local traditions in the art of Western Central Asia from the 6th century BC to 1st century AD", lecture, 3 March 2004, Senate House, London). However, similarly decorated costumes to that worn by the person on this plaque are worn by tribute peoples coming from the north or northeast on the western façade of the Palace of Darius at Persepolis; an actual example of such a costume was found in the Issyk kurgan.
Scientific analysis: Au 93%, Ag 2.3%, Cu 5.1 %, Pb <0.09%, PGE inclusions <5.
- Location
- On display (G52/dc3)
- Exhibition history
-
2023 4 May - 13 Aug, London, BM, G35, Luxury and Power: Persia to Greece
2022 6 Apr - 8 Aug, Los Angeles, The J. Paul Getty Museum, The Classical World in Context: Persia (working title)
2021-2022 13 Oct-10 Jan, Paris, Musee National des arts Asiatiques Guimet, Tadijikistan, au pays des fleuves d'or
2016, 19 Mar-29 May, National Museum, Delhi, The Everlasting Flame
2013 27 Sept-early Dec, Los Angeles, J. Paul Getty Museum, 'Cyrus Cylinder'
2013 9 Aug-20 Sept, San Francisco, Asian Arts Museum, 'Cyrus Cylinder'
2013 21 June-2 Aug, New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 'Cyrus Cylinder'
2013 3 May-14 June, Houston, Museum of Fine Arts, 'Cyrus Cylinder'
2013 15 Mar-26 Apr, Washington, Freer Sackler Gallery, 'Cyrus Cylinder'
2006 7 Mar-11 Jun, Barcelona, Fundacion La Caixa, 'L'imperi Oblidat'
2005-2006 Sept-Jan, BM, 'Forgotten Empire'
1995-2005 17 Nov-, BM, G52/IRAN/29a
1994 16 Jun-23 Dec, BM, G49/IRAN/29a
1989 Exhibition: "Oxus. Der Oxus-Schatzaus dem British Museum London / The Oxus Treasure from the British Museum, London", Museum Rietberg, Zürich (proposed extension to the Staatliche Museen fur Volkerkunde in Munich was cancelled at their request).
1989 BM, Room 35 (Hinton St Mary mosaic staircase), temp display
1975-c 1990 BM, Iranian Room [IR], OT case
1931-c. 1939 BM, Room 20: Persian Room
1923-1931 BM, King Edward VII Building: Franks Display
1900- BM, Gold Ornament Room
- Acquisition date
- 1897
- Department
- Middle East
- BM/Big number
- 123949
- Registration number
- 1897,1231.48
- Additional IDs
-
Miscellaneous number: OT 48
