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LOT 0060
Greek Bronze Hephaistos Statuette
CIRCA 5TH CENTURY B.C.
5 1/4 in. (294 grams total, 13.5 cm high including stand).
The elegant figure depicting the Greek god of fire and metalworking seated and nude except for the pilos on his head, lean body with naturalistic detailing, shown bearded and with curly hair emerging beneath the cap; he would have once held a pair of tongs in his left hand and a hammer in his right hand; accompanied by a custom-made display stand.
Provenancewith Elie Borowski, Basel.
Subsequently in the collection of Denys Sutton (1917-1991), London, acquired from the above on 11 October 1963.
Thence by descent.
with Sotheby's, New York, 6 December 2012, lot 11.
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. 11827-207739.
See Reinach, S., Repertoire de la statuarie grecque et romaine, Paris, 1930, pp.39-40, for the Hephaistos iconography; Hensly, C., ‘Proceed to Olympus: the iconography of the Return of Hephaestus’ in Undergraduate Research Awards. 14, Hollins, 2013, fig.5.
FootnotesAccording to legend, Hephaistos was thrown into the ocean by his mother Hera and raised by the sea nymph Thetis. Upon his return to Olympus, he took his revenge by imprisoning his mother and obtaining the hand of the most beautiful of the goddesses, Aphrodite. He became the blacksmith of the gods. Sculptural depictions of the god, known as Vulcan to the Romans, are very rare. Hephaistos was the armourer of the heroes, and certainly his greatest artwork was making Achilles' armour.
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LOT 0060
Greek Bronze Hephaistos Statuette
Estimate £20,000 - 30,000€23,200 - 34,800 (for guidance only)$27,000 - 40,500 (for guidance only)
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Greek Marble Head of a Youth
6th-5th century B.C.Estimate: £4,000 - 6,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £2,000
Carved in the round; semi-naturalistic anatomic and facial detailing, hair gathered loosely at the neck and tied with a taenia knotted at the nape of the neck; mounted on a custom-made display base. 879 grams total, 18 cm high including stand
Ex old European private property, by inheritance to the current owner. Ex Schuler Auktionen, Zürich, 10 December 2020, lot 1211. 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.11817-206512.
The small statuette to which the head belonged was probably that of a naked youth, the so-called kouros, typical of archaic Greek sculpture from the 7th century B.C. onwards. -
Eastern Mediterranean Painted Pottery Bowl with Handles
8th century B.C.Estimate: £600 - 800 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £300
Conical in form with rounded shoulder, everted rim and two round-section handles; painted with concentric bands around the inner and outer faces. 243 grams, 15.5 cm wide
Acquired in Europe before 1992. European collection. -
Archaic Greek Terracotta Seated Goddess
5th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £650
Represented in the typical female attire wearing a long chiton and a polos headgear; seated upon a throne with side horns, hands upon her knees; flat back. 413 grams, 18.5 cm
Acquired in Europe before 1996.
The typical 5th century B.C. terracotta female figurine was a standing or seated woman wearing a chiton and a himation. It usually represented the goddess Demeter, and it was a votive figure offered to the shrines or temples. Attica was one of the principal centres of figurine production, but Corinth continued to produce solid standing or seated females with moulded fronts and flat backs.
