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This relic has nothing to do with Islam nor Islamic heritage. It predates Islam by 1400 years, 700 years BC. The 2,700-year-old Persian silver drinking cup Shir Dal unveiled in Tehran http://english.irib.ir/radioculture/galleries/photo-gallery/item/151125-the-2700-year-old-persian-silver-drinking-cup-shir-dal-unveiled-in-tehran The Griffin (sometimes spelled gryphon or griffen, gryphos in Ancient Greek or شیردال shirdal in Persian) is a legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. Seen as guardians of secretly buried wealth, the griffin evolved from a ferocious animal of antiquity to become a symbol of strength and valor. It is one of the most common mythical creatures to appear in heraldic images, fittingly representing the hoped for nobility of leaders in human society. Griffins have had a rather consistent physiology throughout the ages. They are generally depicted with four legs, two wings, and a beak, with eagle-like talons in place of a lion's forelegs and feathered, and equine-like ears jutting from the skull. Among the few variations are those traditions claiming that only the females had wings and others indicating that the griffin's tails are serpent-like. One suggested set of associations extends from the rich fossil beds around the Mediterranean across the steppes to the Gobi Desert and on to the myths of griffins, centaurs, and archaic giants originating in the classical world. Classical folklorist Adrienne Mayor draws upon similarities between the skulls of Protoceratops living millions of years ago in the steppes leading to the Gobi Desert, and the legends of the gold-hoarding griffin told by nomadic Scythians of the region.[1] Griffin (Homa) in Persepolis, Iran While it is possible that ancient cultures devised griffin legends from the fossils of actual animals, it is more likely that the griffins were creations of myth and symbolism. The earliest references to griffins come out of ancient Persia. In Persian mythology, in particular during the Achaemenid Empire, griffins or Homa were used widely as statues and symbols in palaces. Homa also had a special place in Persian literature as guardians of light. In Ancient Egypt, griffins were depicted with a slender, feline body and the head of a falcon. Early statuary depicts them with wings that are horizontal and parallel along the back of the body. During the New Kingdom, depictions of griffins included hunting scenes. Several figures in Egyptian mythology were depicted as griffins, including Sefer, Sefert, and Axex. Griffins were also sometimes seen as pulling the chariot of the pharaohs.[2] Tales of griffins and the Arimaspi of distant Scythia near the cave of Boreas, the North Wind (Geskleithron), were elaborated in the lost archaic poem of Aristeas of Proconnesus, Arimaspea, and eagerly reported by Herodotus and in Pliny's Natural History. The griffin was said to build a nest, like an eagle. Instead of eggs, it laid agates. The animal was supposed to watch over gold mines and hidden treasures, and to be the enemy of the horse. Griffins were consecrated to the Sun; and ancient painters represented the chariot of the Sun as drawn by griffins. The griffin was a common feature of "animal style" Scythian gold; it was said to inhabit the Scythian steppes that reached from the modern Ukraine to central Asia; there gold and precious stones were abundant; and when strangers approached to gather the stones, the creatures would leap on them and tear them to pieces. Elsewhere in Ancient Greek mythology, the griffins were said to be "the hounds of Zeus," but were also associated with Nemesis, the goddess of retribution, as well as the god Apollo.[3] Ancient Elamites used griffin symbolism extensively in their architecture. In Elam legends, a Griffin was presented to Elamite Gods. Extract from http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Griffin.

ValJar set this up. a Scythian relic to reward the criminal regime.

What did we get for that chalice.

We gave the Iranians a chance to spit on us, and they have.

We are in the hands of idiots.

“After sitting for over a decade in a Queens, NY warehouse”

Surprised its still there. Must not be worth much.

Obama sure is desperate to reach some kind of a deal.

Did we also throw in a set of Ginsu Knives? What DIDN’T Iran get in this so-called deal?

Obama bends over and the entire nation takes it up the arse.
Who has a size 12 boot to implant in its proper presidential position?

You know what else happened in antiquity?

The freeking nuking of an area in the pakistan area by another madman in the distant past....

History keep repeating...

Because we keep making the same damn mistakes..

There’s always hope that this vessel works out as well for these Persians mullahs as the Temple Vessels worked for Persian King Belshazzar.

[Art.] as a gesture of friendship to Iran from the US.

WHAT friendship?! You MORONS!!