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Mytological Animals


Mythological animals.



684 photos
Gold amphora-rhyton with centaur handles on each side (3rd BCE). Panagyurishte Golden Treasure. See also 12-01-01/19
#03050625

Gold amphora-rhyton with centaur handles on each side (3rd BCE). Panagyurishte...

Gilt bronze and silver figure of the enshrined Buddha, Sri Lanka, 18th century. The image of Buddha stands in a 31 cm-high silver arched shrine. The Buddha's right hand faces palm outwards with thumb and forefinger touching, a gesture indicating argument or discussion. The decoration of the arch spews from the mouths of two mythical aquatic monsters. OA 1905.6-16.83
#03060119

Gilt bronze and silver figure of the enshrined Buddha, Sri Lanka, 18th century...

A pair of fragments of silk, 3rd - 5th CE. These two fragments might once have formed part of a banner headpiece. When discovered by Sir Aurel Stein (1862-1943), they were stitched together to form a larger triangle backed with plain silk and bordered with red tape. The distinctive motif of paired dragons and winged birds is unlike any other textile found there. OA MAS 926a,b.
#03060148

A pair of fragments of silk, 3rd - 5th CE. These two fragments might once have f...

Pottery jar with dragon handles, chinese, 4th-3rd BCE. This funerary jar of the late Zhou or early Han dynasty is made of grey earthenware. It was clearly intended to imitate a bronze vessel, more expensive and carrying greater status. Pottery placed in burials that imitated bronze and laquer came into use during the Easter Zhou period (771-221 BCE). The handles of the jar are in the shape of dragons. OA 1933.10-25.1
#03060150

Pottery jar with dragon handles, chinese, 4th-3rd BCE. This funerary jar of the...

Archaistic jade ring in the form of a dragon and a boy, Ming dynasty, 15th-16th century. The Ming dynasty (1368-1644) had re-established Chinese rule, taking over from the Mongols (Yuan dynasty,1279-1368). Chinese traditions and styles were revived in all things. Many ceramics and jades were modelled on ancient forms. OA 1885.12-27.93
#03060164

Archaistic jade ring in the form of a dragon and a boy, Ming dynasty, 15th-16th...

The simurgh leading an army of birds, 1610. The sandpipers sit on their nest in the water while the simurgh leads the birds to their rescue. The simurgh is a mythical creature related to the roc and the phoenix. It lives for up to 2000 years and may even be immortal. It is said to have a nest in the Tree of Knowledge. From the "Anvar-i-suhail i" by Husain Va'iz Kashifi. ID: Add 18579,fol. f 104
#03060211

The simurgh leading an army of birds, 1610. The sandpipers sit on their nest in...

Water hog,1590. A tusked aquatic beast, possibly a depiction of a Ganges river dolphin. ID: Or 3714, fol. F 394 recto
#03060261

Water hog,1590. A tusked aquatic beast, possibly a depiction of a Ganges river d...

The crow addresses the animals, an illustration to an animal fable, around 1600. A throng of creatures from earth, sea and air gathers around the crow, perched on the peak of a rock. Animal fables were a traditional entertainment to teach the princes the elements of wise statecraft. The Moghul emperor Akbar was particularly fond of them and ordered an illustrated copy of one such collection called Anvar-i-Suhalyi", Lights of Canopus. OA 1920.9-17.05
#03060319

The crow addresses the animals, an illustration to an animal fable, around 1600....

Cosmetics palette from Gandhara,Pakistan; a man riding a seahorse. 1st-2nd CE Schist 13,7 cm across
#030701 4

Cosmetics palette from Gandhara,Pakistan; a man riding a seahorse....

Ceremonial axe from Daulatabad,Baktria,northern Afghanistan,showing a griffin holding two rams. End 3rd to early 2nd Mill.BCE. Copper
#030701 5

Ceremonial axe from Daulatabad,Baktria,northern Afghanistan,showing a gr...

Ceremonial axe from Daulatabad,Baktria,northern Afghanistan,showing a griffin holding two rams. End 3rd to early 2nd Mill.BCE. Copper
#030701 6

Ceremonial axe from Daulatabad,Baktria,northern Afghanistan,showing a gr...

Plate with dog-headed bird, Sasanian, 7th century. Gilded silver dish showing a legendary dog-headed bird known as "senmurw". It appears in the Late Sasanian period of the 6th century in embroidered roundels on textiles. Sometimes it sits on the tree of life and, by beating its wings, scatters the seeds across the earth. In 637 the Sasanians were defeated by an Arab army. ANE 124095
#03070145

Plate with dog-headed bird, Sasanian, 7th century. Gilded silver dish showing a...