Page:History of Art in Persia.djvu/477

 GLYPTic Art. 453 The Persian origin of the next specimen is rendered certain by its inscription. It is a cylinder in lapis-lazuli which belongs to the Armoury at Brussels (Fig. 217). The representation consists of a bearded individual, erect, and about to offer a wreath to the symbolic sacred tree, such as it appears on the bas-reliefs and cylinders of the second monarchy ; above, in the field, is a star, below an ornamental chain, and behind the personage, a Per- sian inscription of three lines parallel to tiie axis of the cylinder, which may be trans- lated as follows: "Signet of the wife of Khsarasasya," or per- haps: "Signet of the woman Khsarsya."* There are still other two stones with Persian characters * but as the designs they embody are destitute of interest we refrain from reproducing them, so as to reserve more space to another category of intaglios, which, though without inscriptions, appear to belong to Persia, either from the general character of the forms or sometimes a — — simple detail of costume. The most curious of all these monuments is a fine cylinder in chalcedony at the Museum de THermitage, in St. Peters- burg (Fig. 318)/ with the tra- ditional palm introduced in the me ^r^t>^ 1 fio* — Drawn by St. Elme Gaulier. field. In front of this tree, the ctunder. jm., inate ix. Fig. 1. king, with bow and javelin about his shoulders, is seen in the act of spearing a foe, who, bent upon one knee, turns to beg for mercy of his conqueror. Behind the two principal figures are four men standing upright, their hands behind their backs» and a rope passed round their necks. ' J. MCnant, Recherches, etc., torn. ii. p. 172, " Ibid., Figs. 149, 151. ' Comptes rendus de la commission archeologique de St. Feiersbourg, 1881, Plate V. Figs. 8, 9, pp. 81, 82. The cylinder in question was bought at Kertch, and had probably been picked np in aome neighbouriqg tomb. Its gold mount seems to be Greek woik of the fbotth century (J. MtoANT, he pp. 168-170). FiC. 217.— Cylinder, I. MfNAXT, h-fhcrches mr la glyptiqut oruntaU, torn. ii. Fig. 150. Digitized by Google