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LOT 0578
Greek Bronze Openwork Pendant Collection
GEOMETRIC PERIOD, CIRCA 9TH-7TH CENTURY B.C.
16 7/8 x 13 in. (2.16 kg total, 43 x 33 cm).
Comprising: eighteen pendants, each with tubular shank and open-ended bulb finial with five lateral vents, some with incised circumferential bands; one similar with dense crosshatching to the shank and bulb, four radiating spurs to the mouth; two larger pendants of similar form, one with six slots to the bulb and the other with seven; all mounted on a felt-backed display board.
ProvenanceA.de Munter collection, Brussels, acquired in the 1970s.
with Jürgen Haering, Freiburg.
Private collection, Europe, acquired from the above 2018.
Cf. Bouzek, J., Graeco-Macedonian Bronzes, Prague, 1974, p. 87, fig. 26, 5-12, 50.
FootnotesThese pendants may have been part of horse harness decoration.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0578
Greek Bronze Openwork Pendant Collection
Estimate £400 - 600€460 - 700 (for guidance only)$540 - 810 (for guidance only)
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Large Greek Red-Figure Skyphos with Lady of Fashion
Campanian, 3rd-2nd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,235
With mammiform body, pedestal base and two loop handles; ovolo patterns in ochre beneath the rim and palmette beneath each handle; Side A: lady of fashion in advancing pose holding up a dish and a mirror, white detailing to the stephane and necklace; Side B: standing figure in a himation with a stephane. 640 grams, 23 cm wide
Acquired on the art market between the late 1990s and mid-2000s. Estate of the late Barry Paul Buxton (1944-2024), Oakham, Rutland. Acquired on the UK art market, 2025. -
Bronze Military Standard Finial of an Ibex
Transcaucasia, 13th-6th century B.C.Estimate: £8,000 - 10,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £4,000
Wth a rounded body and prominent raised neck, a tubular muzzle with stylised eyes and ears and a small, slightly open mouth; a ring with a chain and a large carnelian sphere beneath the chin; a wide incised groove above the front legs, perhaps intended to represent muscles; a long slit beneath the abdomen; standing on a rectangular platform with a pin for insertion to a wooden shaft; accompanied by a custom-made display stand. 643 grams total, ibex: 15 cm high
Acquired in Vienna, Austria, in the 1990s. Collection of N.M., former Israeli Ambassador to Austria (1998–2000). Private collection, London. 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.13039-247908.
In Scythian art, the ibex was often depicted in dynamic ‘animal style’ symbolising life, strength, and perhaps cosmic struggles, potentially linked to seasonal cycles or fertility, showing its sacred status as a totem animal alongside mouflons. The realistically depicted posture of the animal testifies to the ancient masters' keenness of observation and of their skill in rendering the character of the animal in metal. The posture recalls more archaic (7th-6th century B.C.) animal style art found in the Tagar finials. -
Greek Bronze Duck's Head
3rd-2nd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,690
Modelled in the round with realistic features, textured plumage, rounded beak. 236 grams, 10.1 cm
Acquired in the mid 1980s-1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12378-226677.
