Early Dynastic III, circa 2550-2250 B.C. A chlorite vessel with vertical wall and slightly convex base, dense frieze of creatures in combat; eagles with splayed limbs, grasping the serpents in its talons, which in turn are poised to strike at the bird, with stylised scale and feather detailing expressed using a series of ovoid cells, likely once inlaid with stones. Cf. Aruz, J., Art Of The First Cities The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2003, p.337. 1.7 kg, 16.7 cm wide (6 1/2 in.). Acquired from a gallery in France. Kept in the UK since 1982, thence by descent. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by AIAD certificate no.11339-192112. Our vessel is very similar to a vessel fragment of 'Intercultural Style' found at Nippur.