Bronze statue...........thing?

[Oberon]

Hi all,

Would anyone be able to help in identifying the following, or perhaps push me in the right direction of who to ask?

My Nan had it sitting in her kitchen for as long as I recall and when she died a few years ago, it came into my possession. I took it to an antiques fair shortly after and the expert was a bit baffled and could only say for sure that it was bronze, and he had no idea on a date or origin. He did though offer me ?400 for it on the spot, so I assume it?s fairly special.

In terms of height, it?s about 30cm and it weighs?well, a lot

Any ideas anyone? Input of any nature would be of tremendous help!

Thanks in advance.

 

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[stoney56]

No idea but you might try finding a museum curator or someone who can translate petroglyph's. Maybe that will give you a clue.

 

[Mental Granny]

Ya know, it could be an old Egyptian apothecary sign advertising cures for stomach aches.

 

[Oberon]

I took it to Sotheby's and the resident expert hadn't a clue. I may take it to the British Museum one day but when I've been there in the past with various items, they haven't been much help.

 

[JakePhelps]

Cool item!! I bet he was offering you what its worth in bronze and not what its really worth to a collector/museum...

 

[roberte94066]

I believe the marks at the bottom of the statue are cuneiform writing, and the style of the statue seems to fit with that. It is possible that you have a statue from Persia dating back many centuries, possibly b.c. It appears to belong to the Mesopotamian era, spanning Akkadian, Babylonian, and Asyrrian civilizations. It may be a copy of an existing statue, or it may be an original, making it quite valuable!

 

[Oberon]

Many thanks for all your replies. Most helpful!

Would anyone happen to know of any websites which would help evaluate it further?

 

[Snee]

It would be nice if we could get a better picture, perhaps clearly showing the symbols at the bottom...as well as any other markings that could help to identify it.

Do you have any clue where your aunt got it from? Did she metal detect? Did she travel?

 

[AzExplorer]

It says.....
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"I can't believe I ate the whole thing"

 

[tlbuck]

It is ancient cuniform writing, but that is not his stomach he is holding...

Betcha it had something to do with Isthar...

 

[searcher]

did anybody else notice he has 12 toes? or am i just seeing things?
searcher

 

[Snee]

The picture makes it look kind of like it has 6 toes per foot, but if you look closely, the extra toes are only the base. There's 10.

It does appear to be written in a form of cuneiform writing. But I can't find any examples online that match the ones on the statue. It would be really nice if there were a clearer picture or scan done of it. Also the back... Here's an example of cuneiform writing in during the time of Persian and Babylonia empires (now Iran). Very similar. There are translation diagrams online too that I've come across, but I can't match any of them.

 

[JT]

What is on the bottom under the toes? Is it felt pads? Does it feel solid, or can you hear some sort of filler moving in the inside? Probably the best bet would be to contact a museum with an Egyptian section, and see if they can translate the markings.

Just by looking at the pictures, there's no way to tell if it's a tourist souvenier or not.

 

[tallpaul]

12 toes,, they say the egyptians were from another world,. get this checked at the museum,, dont hand it over to anyone eles,, and if the nuseum wants to go away with it get yourself a reciept,, and good luck,, very nice statue,

 

[Wetgreenie]

This may not be much help but,
I was in a book store the other day and noticed a book on Ancient Gods.
I swear the statue on the cover looked really close to yours