3rd millennium BC. A substantial bronze torch or vessel bearer, the tripod base with animal feet; stem formed as a central standing nude female figure with arms stretched upwards, holding a deep bowl balanced on her head. See Simpson, S.T., Queen of Sheba: Treasures From Ancient Yemen, The British Museum Press, London, 2002, item 297, for a stand with bowl; see Muscarella, O.W., Bronze and Iron: Ancient Near Eastern Artifacts in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Metropolitan Museum Museum of Art, New York, 1988, pp.334-335, for objects of a similar form; see Mahboubian, H., Art and Civilization of Ancient Iran, Mahboubian Gallery, Wiltshire, 2004, pp.17-18, for similar objects; see Amiet, P., Art of the Ancient Near East, New York, 1977; Muscarella, O.W., Bronze and Iron. Ancient Near Eastern Artifacts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1988; Aruz, J., Art of the First Cities. The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus, New York, 2003.576 grams total, 19cm including stand (7 1/2"). Property of a West London gentleman; from a private collection since 1989; this lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by AIAD certificate number no. 10519-172048. This figure likely functioned as temple attendant, holding aloft a bowl of incense, a lamp or other form of offering. Fine condition.