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LOT 1120
Byzantine Bronze Reliquary Cross Pendant
CIRCA 9TH-12TH CENTURY A.D.
2 3/4 in. (32.5 grams, 70 mm).
Enkolpion reliquary cross with hinge and suspension ring above; obverse with incised nimbate Jesus in stavrosis position, dressed in hatched garment; reverse with Mother of God in orans pose flanked by fronds. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceEx Den of Antiquity, Cambridge, UK.
From the private collection of a West London, UK, gentleman, formed since the early 2000s.
Cf. Pitarakis, B., Les Croix-Reliquaries Pectorales Byzantines en Bronze, Paris, 2006, item 125, for type.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
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Byzantine Bone Ring with Dove
Circa 5th-6th century A.D. or laterSold for (Inc. bp): £111
Christian image of a dove resting modelled in the round on rectangular bezel, hoop and the dove's body both decorated with hatching. 9.08 grams, 40.97 mm overall, 19.28 x 18.50 mm internal diameter (approximate size British R 1/2, USA 8 3/4, Europe 19.38, Japan 18)
Family collection formed in the 1970s. Ex property of a London lady. Northern Ireland collection. -
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Byzantine Gold Openwork Architectural Ring
6th-7th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,430
Comprising a broad hoop with repoussé scrolled vine tendrils, beaded borders; pyramidal bezel with empty discoid cell flanked by granules and with a beaded wire rim. 4.48 grams, 32.81 mm overall, 17.87 mm internal diameter (approximate size British O 1/2, USA 7 1/4, Europe 15.61, Japan 15)
British private collection, before 1981. Acquired in 2003. -
Byzantine Nephrite Icon Fragment with Christ Blessing
11th century A.D.Estimate: £12,000 - 17,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £6,000
Fragment of a figure carved in the half-round, with pleated garment, holding a book with a cross in the left hand and touching its edge with the right hand; to the reverse, a low-relief cross with knops to the angles, abbreviated legends 'IC / XC / NI / KA' for 'Jesus Christ is Victorious' in seriffed capitals in the spandrels of the cross, each with a superscript macron. 38 grams, 40 mm
New Forest, UK, collection, 1950s. Alexander Cotton collection, UK, 1970-1980s. London gallery 1990s, latterly a London gentleman's collection, 2000s. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12912-244440.
This magnificent, if fragmentary, icon belongs to the most florid period of Byzantium’s renaissance, when, under the aegis of the Macedonian Dynasty, the political, military, cultural and economic power of the Roman Empire reached the last apex of its glory. The figure detailed in bloodstone here represents Christ, as is clear not only from the cross engraved on the back, but also from the garments he is wearing. It is likely that it is Christ as Pantocrator who is represented, maybe originally forming part of a more complex icon representing the Deesis. While this subject in Eastern Roman art is usually reserved for monumental decoration, it is sometimes found on smaller-scale objects as well, such as cameos and steatite icons.
