Amulet; Luristan, 800 B.C.

Zoomorphic amulet. Luristan, ca. 800 BC.
Cast bronze.
Well preserved piece, with green patina of antiquity. Presented mounted on a modern transparent methacrylate base.
Provenance: Collection Georges Savès (1908-1985)
Measurements: 4 × 4 × 1,7 cm

Bronze amulet from the region of Luristan (present-day western Iran), representing a quadruped animal - possibly a mountain goat - with a stylized body, straight legs and curved horns projecting backwards. It has a punctured ring on its back, indicating its use as a pendant or suspended element, possibly of a votive or protective nature.
The production of small cast bronzes in Luristan reached a remarkable development between the 10th and 7th centuries BC, standing out for the formal abstraction, expressiveness and symbolism of their figures, both human and animal. These pieces were used in ritual or funerary contexts, and also as personal ornaments loaded with magical-religious value.

This piece comes from the collection of Georges Savès (1908-1985), a French numismatist and collector with a deep vocation for archaeological study. Heir to a family tradition of collecting, he devoted himself fully to historical and numismatic research since the 1950s, especially on Toulouse and Gallic coins. Throughout his life, he assembled an eclectic collection of archaeological, ethnographic and artistic pieces, enriched in 1966 with the acquisition of part of the Roger Bédiat collection. Author of specialized studies, his legacy remains a reference in the academic and patrimonial fields.