Loading, please wait...
_900x900.jpg "Byzantine Gold Marriage Ring")
_200x200.jpg "Byzantine Gold Marriage Ring")
_900x900.jpg "Byzantine Gold Marriage Ring")
_200x200.jpg "Byzantine Gold Marriage Ring")
.jpg "Byzantine Gold Marriage Ring")
.jpg "Byzantine Gold Marriage Ring")
LOT 0184
Byzantine Gold Marriage Ring
CIRCA 6TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.
1 in. (9.62 grams, 23.93 mm overall, 18.92 mm internal diameter (approximate size British R 1/2, USA 8 3/4, Europe 19.38, Japan 18)).
D-section hoop with expanding shoulders, trumpet-shaped bezel with two facing busts and a cross between and a nimbate bearded bust above, legend 'OMONOIA' (harmony) below.
ProvenanceFrom an important Byzantine collection, formed in the 1970s, Surrey, UK.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13347-258734.
Cf. similar subject in a ring from Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession no.63.1555; see also The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Romans and Barbarians, Boston, 1976, p.179, no.202; Chadour, A.B., Rings. The Alice and Louis Koch Collection, volume I, Leeds, 1994, item 489, for type.
FootnotesThe marriage ring is one of the typologies in which figural decorations are frequently found. Generally speaking, marriage rings are engraved with a representation of a husband and wife, sometimes accompanied by Christ, and usually engraved with wishes for 'harmony, health and the grace of God'. Rings of this type had been used since the late 4th century A.D. and remained extremely popular in Byzantium in the 6th and 7th centuries.
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
AUCTIONS:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
-
Byzantine Decorated Bronze Buckle
6th-8th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £72
Openwork integral plate with hatched decoration and a kidney-shaped loop, two pierced lugs on the underside. 27.4 grams, 56 mm
From the private coin collection of a West London, UK, gentleman, formed since the mid 1980s. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
Piriform body with pointed base, two sets of circumferential banding on the body; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 470 grams, 10.6 cm
From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s. Accompanied by an academic paper by military specialist Dr Raffaele D'Amato, dated 15 July 2019 and titled 'Eastern Roman Empire - Greek Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade (μεσαίον kακάβιον) 9th-11th century AD'.
Apart from the use of siphons or manual flame-throwers called cheirosiphona, special corps of Roman soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια, where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form. -
Large Byzantine Bronze Reliquary Cross Pendant with Christ and Saints
Circa 10th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
Bifacial enkolpion with roundel to end of each arm, hinged polyhedral suspension loop above; obverse with low-relief central Corpus Christi and bust of a saint in each roundel; reverse with central seated figure of Mary surrounded by text and with a nimbate bust in each roundel. 56.8 grams, 98 mm
From the private coin collection of a West London, UK, gentleman, formed since the mid 1980s.
