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LOT 0077
Etruscan Bronze Handle Pair with Heads of Medusa
6TH-5TH CENTURY B.C.
4 3/8 in. (695 grams total, 11 cm wide each).
Each formed as a D-shaped fluted bar with the finials formed as grotesque Medusa heads in Archaic Greek style with protruding tongue and a pair of bearded snakes framing her forehead; mounted on custom-made display stands. [2]
ProvenanceEx private collection of Athos Moretti, Bellinzona, Switzerland, in the 1960s.
with Christies, London, 14 June 1978, lot 344.
with Sotheby's, New York, 29 May 1987, lot 154.
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 search certificate number no.11773-204596.
Cf. Torelli, M., Gli Etruschi, Monza, 2000; Cristofani, M., I bronzi degli Etruschi (Etruscan bronzes, in Italian), Novara, 1985; Cateni, G. (ed.), Etruschi di Volterra, capolavori dei grandi musei Europei, Milano, 2007, fig.9, pp.154-155.
FootnotesThe handles were possibly once part of a hydria or a stamnos. The workmanship of the nose and eyes of the Medusa recall the head of a gorgoneion from a chariot or cart fragment, today at the Metropolitan Museum (inventory no.29.131.3d1–d3).
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0077
Etruscan Bronze Handle Pair with Heads of Medusa
Estimate £8,000 - 10,000€9,280 - 11,600 (for guidance only)$10,800 - 13,500 (for guidance only)
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Greek Terracotta Protome Mask
Circa 4th-3rd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £182
Large D-shaped curved panel with female bust including detailed hairstyling. 194 grams, 13 cm
Acquired 1970s-1996. Property of a North American collector. London collection, 2016. -
South Italian Black-Glazed Miniature Hydria
4th century B.C.Estimate: £2,000 - 3,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £1,000
Decorated with ribbed fluting around the body and broad shoulder, slender neck with stepped and everted rim and mouth, two handles to the equator, a carry handle between neck and shoulder to the rear, discoid foot; repaired. 232 grams, 16.5 cm high
Private collection. Anonymous sale, Eve Auctions, Paris, December 11, 2013, lot 11. -
Greek Bronze Bow Brooch
8th-7th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
Deeply arched bow with a central barrel-shaped extension, integral pin and rectangular footplate. 46.8 grams, 60 mm
From the family collection of a Surrey gentleman since before 1960.
The distinctive form of this fibula seems to be an Italic variant of characteristic Geometric period examples from Thessaly that have been discovered in large numbers, for example in the sanctuary of Zeus Thaulios near Pharos. It belongs to the category of Greek catch plate brooches, although the rectangular footplate is substantially reduced than the Greek prototypes, and the two grooves on the bow are narrower than the continental Greek ones.
