Intaglio with Two Birds

Description This small intaglio depicts two birds, one of which sits on a basket-like nest. Based on similar examples, it appears to have been created in a Greco-Roman workshop and then imported into South Arabia by a traveler, trader, or other agent. It is likely that the intaglio had an amuletic as well as ornamental function.

Exhibitions

• Faces of Ancient Arabia: The Giraud and Carolyn Foster Collection of South Arabian Art. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. 2008.

Provenance Ahmed [local art dealer], Ta'izz, Yemen; Giraud and Carolyn Foster, Baltimore, 1961, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 2007, by gift.

Credit Gift of Giraud and Carolyn Foster, 2007