**Originally Listed At $8000**

Ancient Eastern Mediterranean, Phoenicia, ca. 6th to 4th century BCE. An incredible spoon, with a twisted 84% gold handle (equivalent to 20K+) and carved obsidian lower body and bowl. The golden handle features a large bauble at the top and a socket at its base that fits neatly into a tab on the obsidian lower body. Below this tab, the obsidian has a thick, stem-like portion that serves as the lower part of the handle and is incised with repeated wave motif imagery. The elongated bowl features a high relief swan or duck head at its upper end, as if the animal is dipping its beak to skim along the surface of whatever liquid is in the spoon. The animal has gently incised eyes, nostrils, and beak outline. The style of the animal is inspired by Near Eastern artwork which the Phoenicians, as a great maritime culture, would have been familiar with from trade. Size: 0.9" W x 7.55" H (2.3 cm x 19.2 cm); 7.5" H (19 cm) on included custom stand; quality of gold: 84% (equivalent to 20K+)

Gold and obsidian are materials found in the royal tombs excavated from ancient Phoenicia, suggesting that this spoon was made for someone of very elite status indeed - or possibly their child! Interestingly, the duck or swan image was found on the prows of Greek and Aegean ships, so this may have belonged to someone with ties to trade with those regions.

Bronze ladles of similar style to this spoon with the swan's head manufactured in Phoenicia and traded to Cyprus have been found in a variety of tombs, such as British Tomb 84 at Amathus and the Western Acropolis of Idalion.

This piece has been searched against the Art Loss Register database and has been cleared. The Art Loss Register maintains the world's largest database of stolen art, collectibles, and antiques.

Provenance: East Coast collection, New York Gallery, New York City, New York, USA, before 2010

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#152860

The handle separates easily from the lower part of the spoon. Handle has slight bending to form with rich deposits but is overall beautifully preserved. The lower body has some small chips around the peripheries but is also in overall lovely condition.