Ancient Hellenistic / Levantine Cast Bronze Vulvate Fertility Amulet — Slotted Collar & Saddle Fitting (21 mm — c. 3rd–1st Century BC)
Authenticity & Guarantee
Certification: Certified Authentic — includes signed Certificate of Authenticity (COA) with full provenance documentation.
Provenance: Ex-private European collection, legally acquired from international sales; Hellenistic Levantine / Eastern Mediterranean Sphere.
Item Specifications & Exact Dimensions
Object: Cast Bronze Slotted Collar Fitting / Vulvate Amulet Mount
Culture / Period: Hellenistic Levantine / Phoenician Sphere
Date Range: Circa 3rd Century BC – 1st Century BC (c. 300 BC – 50 BC)
Exact Dimensions: 21 mm length / width
Material: Heavy Cast Bronze (Copper Alloy)
Form & Architecture: Heavy, thick-walled oval saddle-form bronze casting featuring a flat top face engineered around a central almond/vesica-form (vulvate) slotted aperture; profile displays a deep arched saddle contour terminating in twin downward-projecting side flanges; engineered to function both as an apotropaic fertility charm and as a structural harness strap distributor or scabbard mouth collar
Condition: Exceptional, 100% complete ancient condition. Fully intact structural body with a crisp central aperture; preserved under an authentic, heavy pale sand-tan to calcareous burial crust over a dense charcoal-olive bronze core. Free of modern restoration or re-tooling.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT & TYPOLOGICAL LORE
Hellenistic Apotropaic Symbolism & Divine Fertility
Throughout the Hellenistic Levantine world, personal ornaments and equipment fittings frequently incorporated vulvate and almond-shaped (vesica) apertures. Associated with maternal goddesses such as Astarte, Atargatis, and Aphrodite, these shapes represented the source of life, spiritual rebirth, and protective power. Wearing or mounting vulvate imagery onto personal gear served an apotropaic function, intended to repel malevolent eyes (invidia) and grant good fortune.
Saddle Architecture & Strap Mechanics (21 mm)
At 21 mm, this robust cast bronze fitting demonstrates precise ancient metalworking. The deep arched saddle profile was custom-contoured to sit flush over thick leather harness straps, wooden dagger scabbard throats, or belt assemblies. The central slotted aperture allowed thongs or metal tangs to pass through securely, uniting structural utility with protective fertility symbolism.
Typological Analysis & Exact Classification
Primary Class: Classical Antiquity Personal & Equestrian Equipment / Hellenistic Slotted Mount
Sub-Class: Arched Saddle-Form Vulvate Aperture Collar Class
Manufacturing Technique: Solid lost-wax cast copper alloy (cire perdue) with hand-finished interior slotted aperture.
Comparable Archaeological Examples & Museum Accession Numbers
British Museum (Accession No. 1856,0701.2318): Hellenistic / Roman bronze slotted harness mounts and scabbard collars.
Israel Museum, Jerusalem: Hellenistic Levantine bronze slotted belt fittings and amuletic mounts recovered from coastal excavations.
Louvre Museum (Inv. No. AO 22252): Phoenician and Hellenistic bronze equipment fittings with central apertures.
TRN2-1
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