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_900x900.jpg "Byzantine Gold Ring with Married Couple")
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LOT 0227
Byzantine Gold Ring with Married Couple
CIRCA 6TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.
7/8 in. (3.24 grams, 21.00 mm overall, 14.95 x 17.74 mm internal diameter (approximate size British L 1/2, USA 6, Europe 11.87, Japan 11)).
Discoid bezel incuse image of two facing busts with beaded headdresses, legend 'ΘΕΟΥ' (belonging to god) below, later round-section hoop.
ProvenancePrivate collection, 1980s.
Acquired on the UK art market.
Private collection, London, UK.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.13489-262461.
Cf. similar subject in a ring from Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession no.63.1555; Chadour, A.B., Rings. The Alice and Louis Koch Collection, volume I, Leeds, 1994, item 489, for type.
FootnotesSome types of marriage rings exhibit schematic images of the couple in either formal bust form or full length. The bride and groom flank usually a cross and/or a figure of Christ, identifiable by his cruciform nimbus. Christ blesses the couple by joining their hands or by resting his own hands on their shoulders. Here the image of Christ is substituted by the inscription ‘of God’, with the meaning that the marriage is holy and belongs to God.
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:
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LOT 0227
Byzantine Gold Ring with Married Couple
Estimate £1,800 - 2,400€2,090 - 2,780 (for guidance only)$2,430 - 3,240 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£900 (EUR 1,044; USD 1,215) +BP*
-
Byzantine Bronze Ring with Winged Figures
Circa 10th-12th century A.D.Estimate: £100 - 140 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £50
With scaphoid bezel, two low-relief standing nimbate figures with wings and floor-length robes. 3.40 grams, 21.90 mm overall, 18.23 mm internal diameter (approximate size British N, USA 6 1/2, Europe 13.72, Japan 13)
Private collection of Kal Noselson, New York, acquired between 1976 and the late 1990s; thence by descent. -
Byzantine Gilt Bronze Ring with Christ
Circa 7th century A.D.Estimate: £100 - 140 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £50
With flat discoid bezel, facing bust with long textured beard and robes; flanking motifs. 2.37 grams, 22.47 mm overall, 20.68 mm internal diameter (approximate size British U, USA 10, Europe 22.52, Japan 21)
Private collection of Kal Noselson, New York, acquired between 1976 and the late 1990s; thence by descent. -
Byzantine Bloodstone Stamp Seal with Silver Mount
Circa 10th-11th century A.D.Estimate: £2,000 - 3,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £1,000
Pyramidal in form with openwork silver frame and loop above; frame with incised tremello detailing; underside with incuse Annunciation scene, robed Mary standing beside profile winged archangel Gabriel. 5.98 grams, 27 mm
Private collection of Kal Noselson, New York, acquired between 1976 and the late 1990s; thence by descent. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.13424-259842.
The motifs on the stamp seals are predominantly religious in nature and include images of Christ and the saints, which could suggest that they were used for clerical purposes—perhaps in monasteries. The Annunciation is the most common festival scene found on rock-crystal seals.
