Advanced Search 
Pyramidal seal with two birds preying on a goat
Near Eastern, Iranian, Persian
Achaemenid Period
550–331 B.C.
Medium/Technique
Chalcedony
Dimensions
Length x width: 23 x 19 mm (7/8 x 3/4 in.)
Credit Line
Catharine Page Perkins Fund
Accession Number95.83
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAncient Greece and Rome
ClassificationsSeals
DescriptionIntaglio. Pierced for stringing but perforation does not go all the way through. Motif is orientated horizontally. Dead goat, lying on its back with head at left is being devoured by two birds of prey swooping in from the left and right. In the center, between the birds, is a three-branched tree. There are two ground lines under the goat that approximate irregular terrain.
ProvenanceBy 1893: with Edward Perry Warren (according to his records it came from a Turk of Constantinople who said he had it from Bagdad); 1895: purchased by MFA from Edward Perry Warren for $ 29,857.37 (this figure is the total price for MFA 95.9-95.174)