- Museum number
- 123909
- Title
- Series: Oxus Treasure
- Description
-
Horse from gold chariot model: the body is hammered from two plates soldered together, leaving the body hollow, but the legs are solid. The head-stall and reins are added in wire, with circles at the junctions. There is a lozenge setting marks the crossing of the straps on the head. The forelock is seemingly not gathered into a tuft on the top of the head but is depicted as an upswept plume.
- Production date
- 5thC BC-4thC BC
- Dimensions
-
Height: 3.50 centimetres
-
Length: 4.30 centimetres
-
Weight: 6.50 grammes
-
Thickness: 1 centimetres
- Curator's comments
- The style of depicting the forelock swept upright into a plume on the top of the head is not characteristic of monumental representations, as at Persepolis, but can be seen in the minor arts, especially when horses are shown moving at speed as here or for non-Persian horses. The rings on the frontlet are probably intended to represent circular plaques or 'phalerae' as found on a bridle from barrow 5, Pazyryk (Rudenko, 'Frozen Tombs from Siberia: the Pazyryk burials of Iron Age horsemen' 1970: pl. 114; see also pls. 73A-B, 90G-H).
Part of BM.132256 (also OT.8)
Part of 1957,1214.1.
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
2021-2022 13 Oct-10 Jan, Paris, Musee National des arts Asiatiques Guimet, Tadijikistan, au pays des fleuves d'or
2012 24 May-30 Sep, London, BM, 'The horse: from Arabia to Royal Ascot'
2010 29 May-15 Oct, USA, Kentucky Horse Park, 'A Gift from the Desert'(horse only)
2006 7 Mar-11 Jun, Barcelona, Fundacion La Caixa, 'L'imperi Oblidat'
2005-2006 Sept-Jan, London, BM, 'Forgotten Empire'
1995-2005 17 Nov-Aug, BM, G52/IRAN
1994 16 Jun-23 Dec, BM, G49/IRAN/27
1989 Temporary display, BM, Room 35 (Hinton St Mary mosaic staircase)
1975-ca 1990 Jul-, BM, Iranian Room [IR] OT case, no. 8
Persian Landing [PL], c/c East
1931-ca 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
- 123909
- Registration number
- 1897,1231.8
- Additional IDs
-
Miscellaneous number: OT 8 (catalogue no)