Striding lions with Erotes children

Object Details

Label

Through their excavations, archaeologists confirmed a great fire destroyed the city of Timna in the first century CE. They also unearthed this bronze lion and its boy rider covered with a layer of ash. The rider is often identified as Eros or Child Dionysus, the latter relates to the cult of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, who was a popular figure in ancient Arabia. The sophisticated modeling and treatment of this sculpture, one of a pair, attest to the advanced bronze-casting tradition in Arabia. It also suggests the familiarity of local artists with the technical and artistic language of the Greeks.

The lion and its rider were cast separately using the lost-wax technique. An inscription on the base reads, "Thuwayb and Aqrab dhu-Muhasni placed [these figures] at Yafash. Thuwayb and Aqrab of the Muhasni family decorated the house called Yafash."

Provenance

Between 1950 and 1952-2013

American Foundation for the Study of Man, Falls Church, VA, acquired from excavation at Timna, Wadi Bayhan, Yemen [2]

From 2013

The National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, by gift of the American Foundation for the Study of Man [2]

Notes:

[1] See “Incoming Loan Agreement,” dated March 30, 1992, copy in object file. The object was transferred from the American Foundation for the Study of Man to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery for long term loan on March 30, 1992.

Wendell Phillips (1922-1975) founded the Foundation for the Study of Man (AFSM) in 1949 in New York City and was its president until his death. The AFSM conducted two campaigns in Western Aden British Protectorate between 1950 and 1951. The first campaign occurred between March and April of 1950, and the second campaign was from February 19, 1951, until May 3, 1951. Both were supervised by chief archaeologist, William Foxwell Albright (1891-1971), but only the first campaign included the archaeologist, Alexander M. Honeyman (1907-1988), who was then affiliated with the University of St. Andrews. For further background information on the expeditions see: Memo from W.F. Albright, first Vice-President, American Foundation for the Study of Man to the directors of AFSM, December 8, 1952, copy in American Foundation for the Study of Man, collections management file. See also, “Forward” written by Wendell Phillips in Cleveland, Ray L. “An Ancient South Arabian Necropolis: Objects from the Second Campaign, 1951, in the Timna? Cemetery,” [book] (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1965), pp. ix-x.

The American Foundation for the Study of Man (Wendell Phillips, president, 1949-1955) started excavations in present-day Yemen in 1950 under an agreement with Sherif Hussein, the ruler of Bayhan and overseen by the director of Antiquities of the government of the British Protectorate of Aden.

The agreement reportedly provided for a partage of the finds, granting 50% to the Foundation with the balance to the sherif.

[2] See, “Acquisition Consideration Form,” approved on October 20, 2011, copy in object file. See also signed “Deed of Gift,” dated May 2, 2013, copy in object file. From 2013-2023 the object was part of the National Museum of Asian Art’s Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection and on March 21, 2023, the work was internally transferred to the National Museum of Asian Art Collection.

Research updated on June 27, 2024

Collection

National Museum of Asian Art Collection

Exhibition History

Ancient Yemen: Incense, Art, and Trade (September 3, 2022 - ongoing)

The World Between Empires: Art and Identity in the Ancient Middle East (March 11 to June 23, 2019)

A Glimpse of Ancient Yemen (August 18, 2018 to March 30, 2021)

Power and Pathos: Bronze Sculpture of the Hellenistic World (July 28, 2015 to March 20, 2016)

Caravan Kingdoms: Yemen and the Ancient Incense Trade (June 25 to September 11, 2005)

Yemen au pays de la reine de Saba (October 25, 1997 to October 13, 2002)

Previous custodian or owner

American Foundation for the Study of Man (founded 1949)

Credit Line

Gift of The American Foundation for the Study of Man (Wendell and Merilyn Phillips Collection)

early 1st century BCE-mid 1st century CE

Accession Number

S2013.2.77.2

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Type

Sculpture

Medium

Bronze

Dimensions

H x W x D (S2013.2.77.2): 63.5 × 75.2 × 19.4 cm (25 × 29 5/8 × 7 5/8 in)

Origin

Yemen

On View

Sackler Gallery 22b: Ancient Yemen: Incense, Art, and Trade

See more items in

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Topic

casting

metal

bronze

lion

Yemen

Ancient Near Eastern Art

boy

Wendell and Merilyn Phillips collection

Record ID

fsg_S2013.2.77.2

Metadata Usage (text)

Usage conditions apply

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye32cdd155d-6456-4f03-98dc-e556514a23a1