Persian. <em>Head of a Lion</em>, 5th–4th century B.C.E. Bituminous limestone, pigment (Egyptian blue), 8 7/8 x 9 13/16 in. (22.6 x 25 cm). Collection of Robin B. Martin Trust, L54.3. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, L54.3_view1_PS2.jpg)

Persian. Head of a Lion, 5th–4th century B.C.E. Bituminous limestone, pigment (Egyptian blue), 8 7/8 x 9 13/16 in. (22.6 x 25 cm). Collection of Robin B. Martin Trust, L54.3. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, L54.3_view1_PS2.jpg)

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Can you tell me about the Guennol collection?

The Guennol Collection, assembled by Alastair Martin and his wife, features a number of exceptional objects! Several were acquired by the museum or are on long term loan. The couple began collecting objects in the late 1940s, which they soon began offering to museums. Martin became a trustee of the Brooklyn Museum in 1948 and began lending and donating objects to the museum.

The Collection is rather diverse and features art from ancient Egypt, the ancient Americas, Asian art, and American folk art. Objects from the collection can be found in numerous places around the Museum today.

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This is a fragment of a lion sculpture from ancient Persia or Iran. The curving lines used to create details in the face are characteristic of Achaemenid Persian art.

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This lion head is a fragment of a larger stone sculpture from ancient Persia or Iran. It's likely that the lion's mouth was open in a snarl, given the stylized lines and folds of skin that are emphasized on the face.

Head of a Lion

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

The Achaemenid rulers of Persia (modern Iran) established an empire that lasted from 559 b.c. until it was conquered by Alexander the Great in 330 b.c. By that time, the Persian Empire controlled an area extending from Egypt through present-day Iraq, Iran, Syria, and Turkey into India. The Achaemenid kings built huge palace complexes at Persepolis and Pasargadae in southern Iran and hired craftsmen from throughout the world to decorate them with sculpture and reliefs.

This fragmentary lion’s head—representing an eye and part of the muzzle—was part of the decoration of a palace. The modeling of its facial folds is highly stylized and, as on all Achaemenid representations of lions, its mouth is open to snarl or roar.

CULTURES Persian; Achaemenid

MEDIUM Bituminous limestone, pigment (Egyptian blue)

Place Excavated: Persepolis, south of the Council Hall, Iran

DATES 5th–4th century B.C.E.

PERIOD Persian Achaemenid Period

DIMENSIONS 8 7/8 x 9 13/16 in. (22.6 x 25 cm) (show scale)

COLLECTIONS Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

ACCESSION NUMBER L54.3

CREDIT LINE Collection of Robin B. Martin Trust

EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view

CAPTION Persian. Head of a Lion, 5th–4th century B.C.E. Bituminous limestone, pigment (Egyptian blue), 8 7/8 x 9 13/16 in. (22.6 x 25 cm). Collection of Robin B. Martin Trust, L54.3. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, L54.3_view1_PS2.jpg)

IMAGE overall, L54.3_view1_PS2.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2009

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY

You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

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Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.

Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

Can you tell me about the Guennol collection?

What's this?

This is a fragment of a lion sculpture from ancient Persia or Iran. The curving lines used to create details in the face are characteristic of Achaemenid Persian art.

Tell me more.

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Head of a Lion

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

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Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

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