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LOT 0545
Greek Archaic Bronze Brooch
7TH CENTURY B.C.
1 7/8 in. (2.58 grams, 47 mm).
Comprising a simple arched bow, coiled pin and a flaring catch-plate. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceProperty of the vendor's grandfather, thence by family descent, circa 1985.
From the private collection of a New York, USA gentleman.
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AUCTIONS:
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Phoenician Terracotta Head Collection
4th-2nd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £143
Including one with tongue-shaped headdress and painted detailing, one with radiating hair and chignon to the rear, and other types; each mounted on a custom-made display stand. 308 grams total, 7.3-10.7 cm including stand
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent. -
Large Cypriot Brown Ware Storage Jar
Early-Middle Bronze Age, circa 2700-1900 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £221
Of globular profile with narrow neck and flared mouth, single lug and incised band of trilinear zigzags to the shoulder; small hole to one side. 3.8 kg, 33 cm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent. -
Greek Campanian Black-Glazed Kernos
Late 4th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,560
Comprising a round pedestal supporting four small offering pots, interspersed with four female face protomes; looped handle to the centre with parallel strokes in low-relief. 623 grams, 16 cm high
From the West German collection of H.W. Acquired from the De Mynter, Belgium, in 2011. with Gorny and Mosch, Munich, 3 June 2017, no.52. Private Portuguese R.M. collection. Accompanied by a previous catalogue information slip.
The kernos can be recognised by a series of small cups on the lip, with examples dating back to the Bronze Age. It was used to store offerings made to the gods, specifically in cults pertaining to Demeter and Persephone. The receptacles probably contained foodstuffs, or perhaps flowers, and a lamp was sometimes placed in the centre. Kernoses, such as this, were often carried in processions at the Eleusinian Mysteries (secret initiation rites celebrating the goddesses Demeter and Persephone) and were an important object for Greek religious life. Kernoses are thus closely related to the agrarian cult and to the myth of Persephone and Demeter, the goddess of fertility and agriculture. The myth is recounted in an Homeric Hymn (c. 650 B.C.) according to which Persephone, Demeter’s daughter, was seized by Hades, the king of the underworld, who brought her to his kingdom to make her his wife. Distraught, Demeter caused a terrible drought, which continued until Persephone returned to her mother from the underworld. Having consumed pomegranate seeds whilst she was in the Underworld, she was only able to be with her for a few months of the year.
