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LOT 0052
Archaic Greek Ceramic Model Boat
CIRCA 600-480 B.C.
9 5/8 in. (728 grams total, 24.5 cm wide including stand).
Modelled in the round as a miniature flat-bottomed boat with sternpost and three thwarts, one supporting the reclining figure of the boatman; supplied with a custom-made display stand. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000.
From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
Accompanied by an old identification tag.
Accompanied by an original thermoluminescence analysis report from Oxford Authentication.
Cf. similar item in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, under accession no.74.51.1752, for type, from Amathus.
FootnotesA series of ship models, today preserved in the Metropolitan Museum and in the British Museum, depict in considerable detail the features of contemporary vessels, including the helmsman sitting in the bow, the spurs of the ships and the raised stern. All of the preserved ship models come from Amathus, indicating the importance of the site as a maritime centre. Our model could come from the same area. This clay model shows a man who comfortably sits on the back of the ship: we do not know his role and his activity, but – as observed by professor M.A. Mcintosh, he is part of a theōriā, a state pilgrim (theōros). Certainly, he represents the helmsman, the kubernētēs, i.e. the governor who directs the ship.
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Etruscan Terracotta Votive Hand
Circa 4th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
Hollow-formed model hand with fingers held straight together. 430 grams, 20.5 cm
Old private collection, Jacksonville, Florida, USA. Acquired from Agora Auctions, Auction 60, no.417. Property of a South Australian private collector, with collection reference 16.03. Accompanied by detailed collector's catalogue pages including description and images.
Votives of an anatomical nature began in the Hellenistic or late Classical period, where they were associated with healing and with fertility.The red pigment on the votive suggests that it was provided by a male; female hands were white or pink. The votives were provided to visitors at the temple, and were disposed of over time. -
Etruscan Ceramic Votive Foot
4th-3rd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £91
Comprising the outer part of a right foot with elongated toes and anatomical detailing, base of a sandal visible on the outer edge. 351 grams, 19 cm
Acquired in Germany before 2000. English private collection.
This object belongs to impasto ceramics of red-brown typology, and it was probably an unfinished votive foot. It could have been part of a medium-size statuette, or an anatomical ex voto related to a temple deposit, linked with a health divinity. We have parallels in Veii, Vulci and in the whole of the Latial area. -
Archaic Greek Gold Bead Group
Circa 800-600 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £910
Matched pair of hollow-formed globe beads with surface of domes each with a granule cluster finial. 12.36 grams total, 31 mm each
From the property of the late Mr SM, London, UK, 1969-1999.