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Source Description
The horse was a favorite artistic subject in ancient Iran, where horse breeding flourished. This muscular Sasanian stallion was descended from the royal and sacred Nisean breed of the Achaemenian Persians. Although Sasanian horse trappings were elaborate, they did not include stirrups for mounting. In this rendition, the steed lies still, as camels in the Near East do today, waiting for its rider to mount. The medallions on each shoulder contain busts, perhaps of rulers of different parts of the Sasanian Empire, holding their rings of authority.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
141156
label
Horse-Shaped Drinking Vessel
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
141156
contentType
object
title
Horse-Shaped Drinking Vessel
description
The horse was a favorite artistic subject in ancient Iran, where horse breeding flourished. This muscular Sasanian stallion was descended from the royal and sacred Nisean breed of the Achaemenian Persians. Although Sasanian horse trappings were elaborate, they did not include stirrups for mounting. In this rendition, the steed lies still, as camels in the Near East do today, waiting for its rider to mount. The medallions on each shoulder contain busts, perhaps of rulers of different parts of the Sasanian Empire, holding their rings of authority.
date
200–325 CE
citation
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60762436
genreSpecific
Metalwork
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 12 x 10.8 x 32.7 cm (4 3/4 x 4 1/4 x 12 7/8 in.)
cul
Iran, Sasanian Empire (224–651 CE)
accession
1964.41
Source extras
tec
silver, partially gilt
tombstone
Horse-Shaped Drinking Vessel, 200–325 CE. Iran, Sasanian Empire (224–651 CE). Silver, partially gilt; overall: 12 x 10.8 x 32.7 cm (4 3/4 x 4 1/4 x 12 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 1964.41
collection
Near Eastern Art
citations
citation
de la Ferté, Etienne Coche. “Palma et Laurus. Un Monogramme et Un Objet d’art Paléochrétiens En Relation Avec Les Courses de l’hippodrome.” <em>Jahrbuch Der Berliner Museen</em>, vol. 3, 1961, pp. 134–47.
page_number
Reproduced fig. 11
citation
Musée du Petit Palais (Paris, France), and Roman Ghirshman. Sept Mille Ans D'art En Iran: [Exposition] Petit Palais, Octobre 1961 - Janvier 1962. [Paris]: Petit Palais, 1961.
page_number
no. 859, Pl. LXXXVI
citation
Ghirshman, Roman.<em> Persian art: Parthian and Sassanian dynasties, 249 B.C.- A.D. 651</em>. New York: Golden Press, 1962.
page_number
p. 220. Color plate no. 262
citation
Ghirshman, Roman. “Notes Iraniennes XI. Le Rhyton En Iran.” <em>Artibus Asiae</em>, vol. 25, no. 1, 1962, pp. 57–80.
page_number
Figs. 29-30.
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. “Year in Review for 1964.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>, vol. 51, no. 10, 1964, pp. 236–66.
page_number
Listed and reproduced no. 152.
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 14
citation
Shepherd, Dorothy G., and Joseph Ternbach. “Two Silver Rhyta.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 53, no. 8 (October 1966): 289–317.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 297-298, figs. 6, 8, Back Cover
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 14
citation
Ghirshman, Roman. “La selle en Iran,” <em>Iranica Antiqua IX</em>, Leiden: E.J. Brill. 1972, pp. 94-107.
page_number
Discussed p. 106. Pl. LI
citation
Gibbons, D.F., K.C. Ruhl and L.S. Staikoff, "Analysis of Sasanian Silver Objects: A Comparison of Techniques" <em>Archaeological Chemistry</em>. June 1, 1974 , 11-21.
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 7
citation
Harper, Prudence Oliver. <em>The Royal Hunter: Art of the Sasanian Empire</em>. New York: Asia Society, 1978.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 28; mentioned: pl.1, pp. 29,30
citation
Merhav, Rivka.<em> A Glimpse into the Past: The Joseph Ternbach Collection.</em> Jerusalem: Israel Museum, 1981.
page_number
p. 12-13, illust.
citation
Herrmann, Georgina, et al. "Parthian and Sasanian Saddlery: New Light from the Roman West." <em>Archaeologia Iranica et Orientalis: Miscellanea in Honorem Louis Vanden Berghe.</em> Belgium, Macmillan, 1989. p 757-809.
page_number
Discussed p. 767 Pl. VI, VII.
citation
Vanden Berghe, Louis. <em>Hofkunst van de Sassanieden: het Perzische rijk tussen Rome en China (224-642) ; 12 februari tot 25 april 1993</em>. Brussels: Koninklijke Musea voor Kunst en Geschiedenis, 1993.
page_number
p. 107, Pl. 94
citation
Kosmin, Paul. "Banqueting on the Move." In <em>Animal-Shaped Vessels from the Ancient World: Feasting with Gods, Heroes, and Kings</em>.Susanne Ebbinghaus,ed., 310-341. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Art Museums, 2018.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 324, fig. 7.18
creditline
John L. Severance Fund
updatedAt
2026-06-17 11:19:44.140000
sourceId
141156
dept
Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art
coll
Near Eastern Art
med
silver, partially gilt
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
5345774ce77f9254