Creative Commons License
Stone Block with a Spurious Inscription
(South Arabia)
This rectangular block has a two-line "boustrophedon" inscription. The term, which translates as "turning like oxen in plowing," describes inscriptions that read continuously from right to left and then left to right, a common feature in South Arabian texts before the 4th century BC. This text, however, is unintelligible, and it is likely that it was produced in modern times. Yemeni forgers occasionally produce easily transportable pieces, like this example, to sell to foreign visitors. In this case, the maker had no knowledge of the ancient South Arabian language and merely copied the letters.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Sotheby's, London, between 1963 and 1971; Giraud and Carolyn Foster, Baltimore, between 1963 and 1971, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 2007, by gift.
Exhibitions
| 2008 | Faces of Ancient Arabia: The Giraud and Carolyn Foster Collection of South Arabian Art. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
Geographies
Yemen (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 2 1/2 x W: 4 3/16 x D: 1 9/16 in. (6.4 x 10.6 x 4 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Giraud and Carolyn Foster, 2007
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
2007.17.49