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LOT 0199
Byzantine Terracotta Pilgrim Flask with a Saint
6TH CENTURY A.D.
3 in. (3 1/2 in.) (47.2 grams, 77 mm (71.4 grams total, 91 mm including stand)).
Piriform in profile with two thick lug handles to the shoulder, obverse with low-relief facing figure holding a large cross and orb, reverse with facing figure with hand held up in the orans posture; with a display stand.
ProvenanceEx private collection, Mrs L.S., 1990s.
Acquired from the above, 2001.
Private European collection.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12110-218216.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Cf. Wamser, L., Die Welt von Byzanz - Europas Östliches Erbe, München, 2004, items 286-289, for discussion; Comstock, M.B. (ed.), Romans and Barbarians, Boston, 1976, p.203, nos.237-239, for similar.
FootnotesAmpullae like this one were filled with water from holy places, like the lake near the Sanctuary of Saint Menas, famous for its healing properties. In Egypt in the 6th-7th century, and throughout the eastern part of the Roman Empire, these ampullae were an integral part of the equipment of pilgrims visiting holy places and who, like today, carried with them a portion of holy water considered miraculous against ailments of the body and soul.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0199
Byzantine Terracotta Pilgrim Flask with a Saint
Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,170
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Byzantine Bronze Cross Pendant
10th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £195
Nimbate Corpus Christi to the obverse with a cross above; integral suspension loop. 5.34 grams, 39 mm
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Byzantine Bronze Ring with Letter Cross
6th-7th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £221
Comprising a flat-section hoop and discoid bezel with a cruciform inscription containing the words ΦωC ('light') vertically and ZωH ('Life') horizontally, laurel wreath surrounding. 3.32 grams, 22.10 mm overall, 19.62 mm internal diameter (approximate size British T, USA 9 1/2, Europe 21.26, Japan 20)
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
The inscription refers to Jesus Christ being the light, and the life. -
Byzantine Gold Strap End with Facing Figure
Circa 7th-8th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £315
The hollow-formed, tongue-shaped body adorned with a filigree border, repoussé figure with pellets on the torso and serpents framing the head; two ancient repairs to verso. 7.40 grams, 39 mm
Acquired 1990s-early 2000s. East Anglian private collection. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
The beautiful burials of horsemen found in the Avar necropolis of central Europe date to the last third of the 7th century A.D. and the early 8th century A.D. show wealth and pomp. This type of belt element, although present in the Avar graves, was probably produced in the workshops of the Eastern Roman Empire, from where they reached the Avar lands as imperial gifts or spoils of war. They could be simple fastenings for belts, or part of multiple belts, to which sabres and knives were attached, commonly used among Avars, Bulgars and Romans during the 6th -7th centuries A.D.
