Cypriot and Other Idol Group

Furniture fitting comprising a square panel with raised border and four stub feet, poppy head finials (one absent); hollow-formed banqueteer reclining with weight on his left elbow and proper right leg bent beneath his pleated robe; right hand raised supporting a ram's head rhyton, left hand supporting a skyphos; wreath of laurel leaves around his bearded head. 1.58 kg, 25 cm



Private New York collection, formed in the 1960s. Acquired on the North American art market, 1990s. with Cahn Auktionen AG, Basel, Switzerland, 13 November 2015, no.84 (CHF 18,000). 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.12379-226873.

The Greek 'συμπόσιον' 'symposion' was the later part of a formal banquet which took place after the food had been consumed, when the serving of strong drink was accompanied by music, dancing, poetic composition or recital or earnest conversation. The custom has similarities with the Roman convivium and with the customs of many Mediterranean and Western Asiatic people. The Parthian Empire was culturally diverse and included many Hellenic groups; the Arsacid court adopted a range of aspects of contemporary Greek culture, among them Greek military structures and the Greek language as a lingua franca alongside the Parthian (Iranian) language and Aramaic.

Bucchero olpe with a glossy black slip to surface, trumpet-shaped neck and mouth, loop handle to the shoulder and discoid foot, circumferential band of hatched triangles to the shoulder. 854 grams, 16.3 cm



Property from the Upper East Side estate of M.H., New York, USA; a Slovak refugee who collected in the early 1980s.

Squat in profile with broad flange rim, carinated profile, rounded underside. 355 grams, 14.5 cm



Acquired on the UK art market before 2000. Property of an Essex, UK, gentleman.