A ‘RAM'S HEAD’ BRONZE CHARIOT FITTING, WESTERN MONGOLIA, CIRCA 4TH-3RD CENTURY BC

Published: Tina Pang, Treasures of the Eurasian Steppes: Animal Art from 800 BC to 200 AD, New York, 1998, no. 140.

Expert’s note: Ethnological and archaeological research shows that the worship of animals as totems, believed to protect the group through their divine power, was widespread among early nomadic cultures. At Xiongnu sacrificial sites, numerous animal- and bird-headed fittings have been unearthed, often with copper cylinders indicating they were mounted on long wooden shafts. While many scholars interpret these as scepter heads symbolizing divine or clan authority, others suggest they may have served as functional fittings for chariots or horses. This hollow cast ram’s head fitting, likely used as an ornamental axle cap or pole end for a wheeled vehicle, reflects this duality of ritual and practical purpose. Comparable examples have been found in nomadic burials in the Ordos region of western Inner Mongolia, and casting marks reveal its manufacture in a two-piece mold.

The tubular body extending to an elongated neck and mouth, the ram’s head depicted with ribbed curled horns above short pricked ears and incised sinuous eyes, the snout with incised creases and a gently agape mouth, all above the hogged mane falling down the chest.

Provenance: A private collection in Canada, 1980s. Ariadne Galleries, New York and London, acquired in 1993. A distinguished American private collection, acquired from the above on 22 April 2016. A copy of a certificate from Ariadne Galleries, describing the present lot as a vehicle fitting and confirming the dating and provenance above, accompanies this lot. Founded in 1972, Ariadne Galleries has established a reputation as one of the world’s leading dealers in the field of ancient art. With a prominent gallery in New York’s upper East side for many years, in 2014 Ariadne opened its second gallery in London’s historic art district, Mayfair. With nearly fifty years in the industry, Ariadne boasts of several important private collectors and foundations among its clients, as well as some of the world’s most celebrated museums, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Harvard University Art Museums, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.
Condition: Good condition with expected wear and casting irregularities. Obvious losses, minor warping, scattered nicks and scratches, signs of weathering and erosion, and encrustations. The bronze with a naturally grown vibrant patina with malachite and cuprite encrustations.

Weight: 1,336.1 g
Dimensions: Length 20.3 cm

Mounted on an associated metal stand. (2)

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related bronze chariot pole ornament with ram’s head, Northwest China, dated to the 4^th century, 18.7 cm wide, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 2002.201.56. Compare a closely related bronze Argali head socket, mid-Warring States period, 20.5 cm wide, excavated from Yulongtai, Jungar Banner, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, and now in the Inner Mongolia Museum.