Byzantine Silver Cross with Cross on Body

Bifacial lead plaque with figurative decoration: obverse with Saint George, nimbate, on his horse killing a fallen foe with his spear; 'ΓΕΟΡΓ' label above the horse's neck, raised border with pellets and pellet clusters; reverse with relief pattern of a double circle decorated with double arcs forming a cross pellet to the centre. 48.8 grams, 64 mm



Private collection Mr S.A., Switzerland, before 1992, thence by descent.

According to the Christian tradition, Saint George would have lived between the end of the 3rd century and the beginning of the 4th century: born into a noble Christian family, he became an officer in the Roman army and was then named a prefect by Diocletian. But when the same emperor decided to resume the persecutions, Saint George became a victim despite his important political rank. His role in the development of the faith is so important that he is included among the Great Martyrs of the Eastern Church and his fight against the dragon becomes a symbol par excellence of the fight for Good which defeats Evil. In the Christian symbolism of the Middle Ages, the circle, a perfect geometric shape which has neither beginning nor end, designates the universe whose centre is the source and thus evokes Jesus, the man-light.

Substantial jar with dimple base, trumpet-shaped mouth with brad rim and flanked by two loop handles. 329 grams, 94 mm wide



From the early 19th century collection of General Sir George Cockburn (1763-1847), Shanganagh Castle, Co Wicklow, Ireland, sold at auction between 1935-1939. From the collection of the late Dr J.D.H. Widdness, Dublin, Ireland. Accompanied by a handwritten letter by Dr Widdness explaining the bottle's history and provenance, plus a typed transcription. Accompanied by a copy of an old black and white photograph of Dr Widdness holding and admiring the bottle while sitting in his study.

Flat-section ring with four round holes and attachment fittings for four substantial chains, forming a polycandelon chandelier with multiple candles. 528 grams, 27 cm hanging height



Ex Surrey, UK, collection of a gentleman, 1960-2000s.

In 563 A.D., Paul the Silentiary visited Hagia Sophia in Constantinople and described the wondrous lighting effects, ‘Thus is everything clothed in beauty…no words are sufficient to describe the illumination in the evening: you might say that some nocturnal sun filled the majestic church with light.’ The church was lit by polycandela, an early type of candelabra that held glass oil lamps rather than candles. The lamps were either conical or shaped like round bowls with an elongated stem attached beneath. An effective and very atmospheric source of lighting, polycandela required considerable skill in casting and glasswork. Amidst the burning of incense and the chanting of prayers, the flickering light must have helped to inspire pious devotion. Contemporaries certainly attest to this feeling and among the surviving accounts, that of Arculf, Bishop of Gaul, is particularly affecting. In 670 he went on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and visited the Church of the Ascension, ‘…to the customary light of the eight lamps…on the night of the feast of the Lord’s Ascension it is usual to add innumerable other lamps; and under the terrible and wondrous gleaming of these, pouring out copiously through the shutters of the windows, all Mount Olivet seems not alone to be illuminated, but even to be on fire, and the whole city, situated on the lower ground nearby, seems to be lit up.’