Whetstone

Whetstone used for sharpening a blade. At one end is an elaborate bronze handle in the form of the head and forequaters of an Ibex, pierced with a ring. The design is typical of others from the Luristan region, a mountainous area in western Iran just east of Mesopotamia. The whetstone has a square cross section and shows little sign of use. Exhibited at the "Iranian Art Exhibition", National Museum, Tokyo., 1958.