Greek Bronze Swan-Headed Wine Strainer

The body formed as a male head with his elongated neck forming the foot of the vessel; wearing an ivy-leaf crown, stylised, painted facial features and a full beard, two rows of stylised curls above the forehead; the neck of the vessel emerging from the top of his head, trefoil mouth and a handle to the rear; some repainting. 77 grams, 11.8 cm



Swiss private collection formed in 1960s-1970s. 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.13016-246780.

Head vases first appeared in the late 7th century B.C. in eastern Greece. The potters of Attica adopted this shape in the late 6th century, with a clear preference towards female heads, but not excluding male heads, especially when referring to mythological heroes or characters. The work, with its finely modelled features, is the product of an Attic workshop. According to the Beazley classification, the oinochoe should belong to the group N (Cook Class), generally dated to the 480-460 B.C. and widespread around the Mediterranean and Black Sea (a similar female example was found in Aphytis – Chalcidika).

Comprising a square base with a raised border and supported by four stub feet, each originally surmounted by poppy-head finials (some absent); a hollow-formed figure of a banqueteer reclining elegantly with his weight resting on his left elbow, his right leg drawn up beneath the folds of a finely pleated robe; in his right hand, a ram’s head rhyton and his left hand cradling a skyphos; his bearded head with a laurel wreath. 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 composition reflects the iconography of elite banquet culture in the ancient world, capturing both refinement and ritual in a single expressive figure. The Greek 'συμπόσιον' 'symposium' 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.

With laurel-leaf wreath beneath the flared rim, band of meander ornament as a baseline; Side A: striding satyr with torch and oinochoe followed by Eros holding a scroll behind; Side B: woman wearing a himation in active pose with sphere advancing towards a tendril. 814 grams, 20 cm



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. 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 no.13070-249284.

Often, the iconography of an 'elevated' mythological subject was applied to members of Dionysos' retinue. Here we have three typical examples of them: a satyr, an Eros, and a woman, all three behaving according to Bacchic ecstasies.