Fan or fly-whisk handle in the form of four female figures ca. 8th-7th century B.C. Assyrian Two ivories carved in the round showing nude and richly adorned female figures were found in the Throne Room of the Burnt Palace at Nimrud. The example in the Metropolitan Museums collection, which comprises four back to back figures originally overlaid with gold leaf, was blackened through exposure to fire when the palace was sacked during the final defeat of Assyria at the end of the seventh century B.C. This piece was probably used as the handle of a fan or fly-whisk. A hole drilled into the top suggests that an attachment was originally slotted into it and secured by a dowel. Several elements are characteristic of North Syrian ivories, including the arresting frontal gaze of the nude, elaborately adorned female figures, and their features: large eyes, small mouths, and receding chins. Each figure has an emphasized pubic triangle and wears a polos (a high, cylindrical crown), a choker-style