Exquisite example of pottery vessel shaped as a
humpbacked bull, with mouth open to serve as
spout, long upturned horns and sturdy conical
legs. The overall surface punctuated by small
incised strokes to simulate the pelt of the
animal.
Pottery such as this beautiful bull vessel, related
to the grey-ware of north-western and central
Iran and commonly labeled 'Amlash', have been
found at the important site of Marlik in Gilan,
between the Elburz mountains and the Caspian
Sea, an area covered by thick vegetation and
quite humid in the summer. The tombs at the
site were constructed of stone and some
contained multiple burials and a wide range of
inventories. Most extraordinary are the many
figurines in red and grey pottery, usually hollow,
of both humans and animals, mostly
humpbacked bulls like ours, with the head
turned into a pouring spout. These figures
feature a surprisingly elegant silhouette and
simplicity, which seem to have emerged suddenly
as a consequence of an Indo-Iranian migration
into the region during the second half of the 2nd
millennium BC.
On the whole, the cemetery at Marlik has been
dated to the Iron age period (1400-1000 BC)
and to this date our specimen should also be
attributed.
For a comparable example in the British Museum
see, J. Curtis, Ancient Persia, BM, 2000: p.21,
pl.18.
