Auction Highlights
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Etruscan Painted Terracotta Architectural Cornice
Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,900
A fragment of amorphous form, decorated in relief with scrolling tendrils and anthemion, painted egg-and-dart ornament above, surmounted by moulded bands and a frieze of meander and chequerboard panels; remains of red and black painted pigment. -
Roman Bronze Eros Cradling Goose Applique
Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,950
Formed as the bust of Eros looking upwards, stub wings to his shoulders, holding a goose to his chest; conical socket above each wing; eyes with silver inserts; old collector's label '1994 51.75' to the reverse; mounted on a custom-made stand; likely a socket base. -
Roman Silver-Gilt Military Buckle for an Elite Imperial Officer
Sold for (Inc. bp): £7,800
Comprising a rectangular plate, richly decorated with embossed laurel leaves in a grid, framed with raised bosses, the buckle loop comprising opposing dragons with open mouths, holding a spherical tongue-rest, another pair of smaller dragon heads to base, the tongue with a smaller pair of punch-decorated dragon heads. -
South Arabian Bronze Bowl with Mythical Animals
Sold for (Inc. bp): £5,850
Hemispherical in form, repoussé interior displaying graduated concentric registers of stylised and mythical animals within tessellating cartouches; a low relief mesomphalos decorated with rosette at centre; geometric ornament around the rim. -
Assyrian Bronze Relief Fragment
Sold for (Inc. bp): £16,900
Displaying a corrugated rim above and below; two advancing soldiers, each striding forwards over the headless body of a dead enemy, carrying a severed head in each hand; the soldiers shown bearded and each wearing a pointed and segmented helmet with a recess to accommodate the ears, a cuirass and thigh-length tunic, with a bow over one shoulder and a sword slung from a waist belt; mounted on a custom-made display stand. -
Bronze Age Gold Bracelet with Torc-Shaped Terminals
Sold for (Inc. bp): £11,440
Of penannular form with expanded sections at the centre and to both shoulders. -
'The Oving' Anglo-Saxon Gilt Bronze Great Square-Headed Brooch
Sold for (Inc. bp): £4,160
Comprising a rectangular headplate with two panels of chip-carved Style I ornament, flanking a beast-head with triangular muzzle and two pellet eyes, raised three-sided frame and outer band of pellets above beast-heads with lentoid eyes; the shallow bow with raised median rib, flanges to the edges and punched pellet detailing; footplate with beast-head between curved pellet lines, pierced horse-head lappets, lozengiform central panel with knot of Style I limbs; two lateral discs, one pierced to accept a stud and the other with a domed stud in place; the finial a disc with human mask inverted; pin-lug and part of catch to the reverse. -
Anglo-Saxon Gilt Bronze Great Square-Headed Brooch
Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,900
Displaying chased panels populated with Style I zoomorphs and geometric forms, borders of annulets, raised masks to the upper corners of the headplate; applied discoid boss to bow decorated with a rosette, addorsed beast heads below; extensive remains of gilding; pin lug and catchplate to reverse and remains of ancient repair, lower part absent. -
'The Tenby' Hiberno-Norse Viking Penannular Brooch
Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,640
Comprising a round-section crescent with flared ends terminating in two curved spatulate flat panels, each with a ropework border surrounding a two-band knotwork motif; cleaned and conserved. -
Medieval Oil Painting of Sorrowful Virgin
Sold for (Inc. bp): £9,100
The weeping Virgin with her head bowed to the left and hands raised to her chest on a dotted gilt background, an expression of pain on her delicately formed face; wearing a white veil and a black long-sleeved robe, the veil arranged as a headdress and covering her hair; on wood and mounted in a later carved wooden architectural frame. -
Medieval Stained Glass Panel With Saint Martin on Horseback
Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,080
Shown beneath an arcade, offering his cloak on the end of his sword to the beggar at his feet; polychrome detailing; repaired with lead cames and held in a wooden frame. -
Medieval Stained Glass Panel with The Virgin and Child
Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,860
Composed from irregular painted panels bearing mainly foliage designs and figural elements; Mary crowned and enthroned with infant Jesus on her knee, in a lobed vesica-shaped panel held with lead cames; mounted in a wooden frame with modern replacements. -
Medieval Stone Column Capital with Lion and Human Face
Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,950
Carved in the half-round with a frieze composed of interlaced foliage with two rows of acanthus leaves and foliage scrolls, framing a lion's head on one side and a human head on the other, remains of lion's mane to the third; drilled holes to the raised surfaces and sockets for the insertion of decorative stones. -
'The Kirkleavington' Medieval Bronze Inscribed Purse Frame
Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,640
The bar with central D-shaped block pierced vertically by a stud surmounted by the suspension loop, with four pierced flanges to the underside; the frame in two sections, the larger a U-shaped rod with pivot for the bar, the smaller pivoting within the inner face, both pierced on the inner face; the block inscribed to one face with capital S and to the other with intersecting Vs; the bar inscribed to one face in capitals 'A DOMINI TECVM' and to the other in coarsely incised capitals 'AVEMARIA G[R]ACIAPLE[NA]'; the smaller rod inscribed in capitals 'CREATOREN CELI ET TERRE ET IN [IES]VN'; the larger inscribed with a band of scrolled decoration and the text in Lombardic capitals 'SOLI DEO HONOR ET GLORIA'; the accompanying letter discusses the texts (1) Ave Maria G[r]acia ple[n]a Dominus Tecum 'Hail Mary full of grace, the Lord [is] with thee'; (2) Soli Deo Honor et Gloria 'Honour and glory to God alone'; (3) Creatorem celi et terrae et inferum 'creator of heaven and earth and in Jesus'. The intersecting Vs may form a monogram for A[ve] M[aria]; the 1847 letter describes the findspot as 'found at Kirkleavington near Yarm in the sill of a brook' in the North Riding of Yorkshire. -
'The Roxwell' Medieval Gold Signet Ring of 'King's Serjeant William Skrene'
Sold for (Inc. bp): £23,400
Gold hoop and discoid bezel with incuse ropework border; incuse image of a bird of prey perching with wings spread and head turned; blackletter incuse and reversed inscription in an arc above the bird's head and pinions '·al : for : ye : best ·' (all for the best); repair to hoop. -
Medieval Silver 'Edmund Plantagenet, Earl of Rutland' Royal Hawking Vervel
Sold for (Inc. bp): £9,750
Or a leg ring inscribed '+Earle of Rutland' in derivative black letter script, for a female merlin or sparrow hawk (due to the youth of Edmund Plantagenet who died aged 17); the ring with a convex interior face. -
Post Medieval Gold Memento Mori Ring with Inscribed Posy 'In God Alone Wee Two Are One'
Sold for (Inc. bp): £4,680
Displaying large flower heads, foliage and a skull to the outer face, enhanced with black enamelling; interior inscribed in a cursive script 'In god alone wee two are one', together with possible maker's stamps 'D' and 'F' in two rectangular cartouches. -
Heavy Post Medieval Gold 'Love Is The Bond Of Pease' Posy Ring
Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,860
Composed of a gently carinated hoop, the interior inscribed in cursive script 'Love is the bond of pease'. -
Post Medieval Gold 'Live Life to the Full' Decorated Posy Ring
Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,380
Composed of a decoratively notched hoop divided into chased rhomboidal panels displaying foliate tendrils and horizontal hatching alternately; the interior inscribed in Roman capitals with the Latin phrase: 'x x x x VIVE x VT x VIVAS'. -
English Milled Coins - George VI - 1937 - Cased RM Proof Coronation Gold Set [4]
Sold for (Inc. bp): £11,700
Set comprising gold five pounds, two pounds, sovereign and half sovereign. Obvs: profile bust with GEORGIVS VI D G BR OMN REX F D IND IMP legends. Revs: St George and dragon; date in exergue; with original Royal Mint hinged red leatherette case of issue.
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Egyptian Gold Repousse Pharaonic Falcon with Original Linen and Plaster Backing
Circa 500 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,430
From mummy wrappings, Horus falcon with spread wings wearing a sun disc and gripping a shen symbol in each claw; applied to a woven fabric backing; held in a membranous display frame. 25 grams total, 70 x 70 mm including case
From a Spanish collection, formerly with a German dealership in the 1980s.
Similar in form to the elaborate inlaid gold pectoral discovered in the tomb of Tutankhamun, for which see Andrews, C., Ancient Egyptian Jewellery, p.134, no. 117. -
Egyptian Schist Double Bird Palette
Predynastic Period, circa 3500 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £910
The crescentic body with stylised bird head ends; eyes pierced; central stem with single hole. 59 grams, 13.5 cm wide
Acquired prior to 2000 from a UK collection. Canadian private collection of Mr A.K. of Montreal. -
Egyptian Carnelian Cobra Amulet
Third Intermediate Period, circa 900 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £910
Carved on a free-standing rectangular base; suspension loop to the serpent's back. 8.58 grams, 33 mm
Acquired prior to 2000 from a European collection. Canadian private collection of Mr A.K. of Montreal.
The sacred uraeus was a symbol of royalty, sovereignty and divine authority in ancient Egypt. -
Egyptian Gold Cat Amulet of the God Bastet
Late New Kingdom, 1070-900 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £845
Modelled seated on an arch-shaped base, with simple facial detailing and suspension loop to the reverse. 0.52 grams, 8 mm
Ex French collection 1920s, Paris art market. -
Egyptian Lapis Lazuli Necklace with Papyrus Flower Amulets
New Kingdom, 1550-1070 B.C. and laterSold for (Inc. bp): £650
Composed of restrung lapis lazuli papyrus flower amulets, very fine lapis cylindrical beads, tiny red beads and gold spheres, with a modern clasp. 10 grams, 60 cm long
Fine condition.
UK private collection before 2000. UK art market. Property of a London gentleman. -
Romano-Egyptian Gold Serpent Ring
Roman Period, 30 B.C.-323 A.D. or laterSold for (Inc. bp): £4,160
The hoop a double-coil with lateral loops, lentoid head, applied cell with beaded wire collar and inset green glass cabochon. 4.32 grams, 21.57 mm overall, 17.47 mm internal diameter (approximate size British M, USA 6, Europe 12.46, Japan 12)
From the Gustave Mustaki collection, Alexandria, Egypt. Acquired early to mid 20th century and exported under Egyptian government license. with Charles Ede 1990s. -
Egyptian Gold Mounted Scarab with Bes
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £585
The stone or faience scarab decorated with a pale blue glaze with figure of the god Bes; gold bulbs to the perimeter; gold setting inlaid with a polished garnet cabochon to the domed upper face. 1.82 grams, 16 mm
From an early 20th century collection. -
Egyptian Gold Mounted Hardstone Scarab
New Kingdom, 1550-1070 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £936
The scarab with simple incised detailing and hieroglyphs to base, with the name Amun-Ra, the mount with two suspension loops. 2.51 grams, 19 mm
From an early 20th century collection, Home Counties, UK, 1930-1940s. -
Minoan Lentoid Rock Crystal Seal
Circa 1450-1375 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,470
Displaying an incuse bull or other horned quadruped looking backwards; drilled for suspension. 3.63 grams, 18 mm
Acquired in 1970. with Coins and Antiquities, formerly known as D.J. Crowther Ltd, Mayfair, London, UK. Private collection of a London antiquarian.
The style of the lentoid seal has similarities with an agate lentoid seal from Fourni, Archanes, dated to the last period of the Cretan Palace in Knossos, before the island was occupied by the Achaeans. On the Cretan lentoid seals, single animals or a group of animals are plentiful. One of the most common motifs is that of a reclining or standing animal. Single animals are sometimes depicted with contorted bodies. -
Eastern Greek Carnelian Scarab Seal
6th-5th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £5,200
Modelled with semi-naturalistic anatomical detailing, the base displaying a battle showing a mature and muscular naked man grappling with a winged gryphon; drilled for suspension. 2.29 grams, 16 mm
Ex F.A., Brussels, 1980. Private collection of a London antiquarian.
Combat between a man and gryphon is a well-attested subject matter on Greek scarabs. A faience factory was found in Naukratis by Flinders-Petrie, with innumerable faience and discarded moulds. The motifs on the bottom surface are repetitive and hurriedly worked. They depict lucky symbols or representative subjects (lions with sun disc, ibex, Horus falcons, lotus flowers); such motifs had already been adopted into Greek art but are generally considered typically Egyptian. Here the subject of a fight against a gryphon is Greek, although the style of the fighting character seems Phoenician, which points to Eastern Mediterranean workmanship, possibly on the Island of Rhodes. -
Mycenaean Gold Roundel Pendant
1350-1200 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,170
Produced using repoussé technique, circular in shape with a design of scroll motifs to the outer edge; to the centre a roundel with ropework outline within a roundel of raised dots; applied gold loop for suspension. 1.04 grams, 30 mm
Acquired in the 1990's; cat.1704. From an important Mayfair, London, UK collection. -
Early Cypriot Red Burnished-Ware Jug
Bronze Age, circa 2300-1650 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,300
Bulbous bodied with a rounded base, slender cylindrical neck, trumpet-shaped rim and integral handle, decorated with incised circumferential bands, hatched triangles and chevrons; accompanied by an acrylic display base. 388 grams, 18 cm high
Acquired in the 1990s. From the deceased estate of a North Yorkshire private collector, UK. Ex Den of Antiquity, Cambridgeshire, UK.
Red burnished-ware pottery became the dominant pottery ware lasting into the Middle Bronze Age on the island of Cyprus. Vessels were handmade and covered with a slip, which was burnished and often decorated with patterns incised with a sharp cutting edge before being fired. Potters were able to produce vessels that were either mottled or painted in two colours, often red outside and black inside and on the exterior of the rim.