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LOT 0059
Greek Gilt Bronze Wine Strainer with Swan-Head Handles
4TH-3RD CENTURY B.C.
7 3/4 in. (402 grams total, 19.7 cm including stand).
Comprising a shallow bowl and broad flange rim, two integral scalloped handles with lateral scrolled flourishes, each tapering to a S-curved handle with swan-head terminals with incised eye and beak detailing; perforated whirl within roundel to interior base; accompanied by a custom-made display stand with mirror.
Provenancewith Hôtel des ventes de Belfort Sarl, October 2011, no.16.
Acquired by the present owner at the above sale.
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.12209-222140.
This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
Cf. Reeder, Ellen D., Hellenistic Art in the Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore, 1988, p.125, no.130, for similar examples and a general discussion of type; A Passion for Antiquities, Ancient Art from the collection of Barbera and Lawrence Fleischman, The J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, 1994, pp.77-78, no.31D; and The Search for Alexander, exhibition catalogue, 1980, p.167, no.130; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 1972.118.88, for a group containing a strainer with similar looped handle and bird head terminal; a similar specimen in the Walters Art Museum, accession number 57.910; a similar example in shape and quality can be seen in the ‘Tomb of the Prince’, in Pella, cf. Touratsoglou, I., Macedonia, History, Monuments, Museums, Athens, 1996, p.240, fig.312.
FootnotesElaborate gilded strainers, such as this present example, were used at symposia and festive occasions for the purpose of preventing the dregs of wine from entering the wine cup. This and other related silver utensils became popular in the later 4th and 3rd century B.C. These highly decorated wine strainers were fitted with dual handles forming loops in the shape of twisting animals, here a swan. Usually they took the form of a shallow dish complete with four rings of perforations in the centre in order to drain the wine. Strainers of this type were used to separate out sediments which could be found in the thick Greek wine. Examples similar to this one have been found in royal tombs in northern Greece, as well as the tomb of a monarch in Sudan.
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LOT 0059
Greek Gilt Bronze Wine Strainer with Swan-Head Handles
Estimate £8,000 - 10,000€9,280 - 11,600 (for guidance only)$10,800 - 13,500 (for guidance only)
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Graeco-Persian Lapis Lazuli Stamp Seal with Lion
5th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £156
Plano-convex with intaglio scene to underside, sheep in profile beside a tree; supplied with a museum-quality impression and old dealer's label with impression. 1.9 grams, 12 mm
From the private collection of P. Chapman, collected from the 1970s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato. -
Graeco-Persian Agate Scaraboid with Recumbent Zebu
Late 4th-3rd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £260
Engraved to the underside with a reclining zebu facing right with short protruding horns and a pointed ear; smooth, curved top and a narrow longitudinal perforation. 1.83 grams, 15 mm
with Herbert A. Cahn, Basel, 1990s. Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate no.S00075367. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
The body, head and joints are rendered in the “globolo” drilling technique, in which circular recesses of different sizes are carved into the stone, whilst fine cuts are used to depict the horns, ear and tail. In the Achaemenid period, ‘globolo’ style visible on some gemstones, mainly with animal motifs, developed in Syria-Phoenicia, but the gems did not carry specific Persian motifs, except perhaps this series with a zebu bull. -
Greek Terracotta Black Glazed Kantharos
Boeotia, 5th century B.C.Estimate: £800 - 1,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £360
With a tall flared foot, tapering body and two lateral high strap handles, the sidewall set off from the foot by a carination; reassembled from fragments. 360 grams, 19.5 cm wide
Ex Mr Bohler, Bern, Switzerland, prior 2001. Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate no.S00074898. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
