Greek, Roman and Western Asiatic Bronze Ring and Bezel Collection

Carved in the round figure of the goddess standing nude with one hand raised and the other on her pudendum, her hair gathered into a chignon with lateral bunches on the crown and with voids to allow for the suspension of small gold earrings; putto at her left knee; left hand partly absent; remounted on a socle base. 1.2 kg, 32.7 cm



Acquired in the 1992. 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.12860-241669.

Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty, was one of the most widely worshipped deities in the ancient world, particularly across the eastern Greek regions of Asia Minor. In these areas, her image often blended traditional Greek ideals with local influences, giving rise to distinctive regional styles. Marble figures such as this would have served not only as works of art but also as expressions of devotion, reflecting both personal piety and broader cultural values surrounding beauty, fertility, and desire. The enduring popularity of Aphrodite’s image speaks to her central role in daily life, where she was invoked not just in matters of love, but also in marriage, prosperity, and well-being.

Modelled in the round, standing on splayed legs, with a small tail and long body, curving ears. 60 grams, 53.5 mm



From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s.

Piriform body with splayed foot and narrow handles; the neck with slender lotus blossoms and palmettes, Side A) two opposing roosters with a lotus blossom in between, two standing swans flanking, below a youth on horseback holding the reins of a trotting horse, a man and a woman behind the horse; Side B) a grazing deer before an advancing panther looking back, two opposing sphinxes below with their heads turned back and front paws raised. 1.06 kg, 28 cm



Ex Münzen und Medaillen A.G., H. Cahn, Basel, 13 April 1985. Private collection, Bern, Switzerland. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12643-236366.

An important work by the leading master of the 'Chalcidian' workshop, which, despite the name, is not to be located in Chalkis itself but rather in a Chalcidian colony in Magna Graecia (possibly Rhegion). Within the oeuvre of Phineus, who is known for his neck-amphorae, examples with two image zones are very rare—see, for example, the fragmentary amphora in the Faina Collection in Orvieto, with similar sphinxes.