A finely carved brown hardstone amulet in the shape of a bull's head. The distinctive silhouette with a wide brown bone and an elongated muzzle is finished by the addition of ears and short horns. There are incisions for the nostrils (now filled with earthly encrustation) and mouth. A perforation at the back of the neck was made for suspension. The smoky beige-brown stone is smooth and polished. There is a chip to the right ear and 'the back of the neck'. The Jemdet Nasr Period took place in southern Mesopotamia, known as Iraq today, with a great number of administrative cuneiform tablets and seals coming from there. The stamp seal was a carved object, usually made of stone, which first appeared in the fourth millennium BC and was used to impress pictures or descriptions into soft, prepared clay. These seals guaranteed the authenticity of marked ownership: as such, they were instrumental in legal transactions, and in the protection of goods against theft. Measurements: circa L 4cm x W 3.5cm Weight: 45.07 Provenance: From the property of late Mr SM, London, UK, 1969-1999, thence by decent.