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Chlorite is a distinctive gray-green stone that
was utilized during antiquity for the
fabrication
of luxurious containers in the greater Gulf
region
as well as southern Iran. Excavations at the
archeological site of Tepe Yaya, dated to the
mid-third millennium B.C., in Iran unearthed
the
ruins of workshops where such vessels were
discovered. As well, raw materials used for
their
manufacture, chlorite as well as steatite,
quarried
from the nearby hills were also present. On
the
island of Tarut, in the Gulf close to the
Arabian
coast, over six hundred complete and
fragmentary vessels and weights have been
unearthed. Because many partially formed
objects found on Tarut were discovered next
to
chunks of unworked chlorite, it has been
surmised that this island was once a center
of
production for these works.
Found throughout the ancient Near East,
from
Syria to the Indus Valley, revealing the
extensive
trade routes of the time, these works are
classified by modern historians as belonging
to
the “Intercultural Style,” called so because
they
derive iconographical elements from both
Near
Eastern and Harappan traditions. Much like
the
written cuneiform alphabet was used by
several
distinct cultures throughout the ancient Near
East
to dictate their individual spoken languages,
so
such vessels were created by various
cultures,
each adorning the works with their own
distinct
aesthetic style. Many examples were
discovered
in the ruins of palace and temple structures
or
entombed in the graves of the nobility,
including
Sumerian Mesopotamia. Clearly these
vessels
were among the most precious luxury items
that
could only be afforded by the ruling elite.
This cylindrical flat-based cup has been
decorated
with a
series of interwoven snakes, their sinuous bodies
delicately
carved
onto the surface in flat relief and embellished with
elliptical cut-outs, as to receive inlays of coloured
stones. This decorative motif is
consistent with the “Intercultural Style”
which
characteristically includes vegetal,
architectural,
animal and human subjects for decoration.
- (X.0313 W)
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