Black stone pendant in the form of a bird, c. 2500–1500 BC, on a sculptural gold necklace.
This artwork originates from ancient Mesopotamia. Its subject - a bird in flight - is rendered with delicate precision. The beautifully contoured surface, worn smooth through touch, captures a minimalism prescient of 20th century sculpture.
The bird, represented in elemental form, may have been symbolic. The artefact was catalogued by the late Professor Wilfred George Lambert, a leading authority in Assyriology.
The carving is suspended on an 18ct gold necklace, the freeform design evocative of our modern universal for peace and hope - a dove carrying a branch.
