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LOT 0494
Italic Silver Wire Fibula
CIRCA 700-600 B.C.
3/4 - 4 7/8 in. (9.11 grams total, 1.8-12.4 cm).
With a coiled spring and lateral lugs; tapering shank, and separate ring. [3]
ProvenancePrivate collection, Switzerland, 1992.
Thence by descent.
Private collection, since the late 1990s.
Cf. similar complete example in the BM, inv.no.1872,0604.912, in Walters, H.B., Catalogue of the Bronzes in the British Museum. Greek, Roman & Etruscan, London, 1899, no.2046, for a complete specimen of the typology.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0494
Italic Silver Wire Fibula
Estimate £200 - 300€230 - 350 (for guidance only)$270 - 410 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£100 (EUR 116; USD 135) ‡+BP*
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Etruscan Amber Head Pendant
Etruria, 5th century B.C.Estimate: £1,800 - 2,400 (+bp*)
Bids: 4 | Current Bid: £1,600
Carved from translucent red-brown amber as a profile head with stylised Archaic features, large almond eye beneath a defined brow ridge, a softly smiling mouth, and carefully delineated hair arranged in striated bands sweeping back from the face; a drilled perforation at the crown indicates its original function as a suspended ornament; accompanied by a display stand. 23 grams, 50 mm (242 grams total, 81 mm including stand)
Sotheby's, London, 14-15 December 1981, no.206. American private collection; acquired at the above sale. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13329-257968.
Amber was a prestigious imported material in Etruria, highly prized for its rarity, colour, and perceived apotropaic power. From the late 6th century B.C. onwards, figured amber pendants appear in elite tombs, particularly those of women, reflecting both personal identity and a protective role within funerary belief systems. The prominent, wide-open eye here may have served as a talismanic motif, thought to ward off malign forces and ensure the wearer’s vigilance and well-being in life and beyond the grave. This piece reflects the distinctive aesthetic of Etruscan amber carving, in which Mediterranean influences are reinterpreted with a locally expressive sculptural style. -
Greek Bronze Ring with Standing Figure
Circa 3rd-2nd century B.C.Estimate: £30 - 40 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £5
Featuring a D-section hoop and an oval bezel with a stylised figure facing left. 1.58 grams, 18.07 mm overall, 14.74 mm internal diameter (approximate size British H, USA 3 3/4, Europe 6.18, Japan 6)
From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
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Minoan Facetted Carnelian Stamp Seal
Circa 20th-15th century B.C.Estimate: £3,500 - 4,500 (+bp*)
Bids: 3 | Current Bid: £2,500
Four-sided bead with an oval panel on each side: panel 1: reclining feline with frontal head with apotropaic eyes; panel 2: three-leaved plant opposite a goblet(?) with four pellets and two crosses; panel 3: a plant and a big frontal apotropaic eye; panel 4: three segments, a plant, a butterfly or a bird; accompanied by museum-quality impressions. 4.21 grams, 21 mm
From the collection of the late Mr Priday, Hertfordshire, UK, thence by descent. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13339-258812.
Four-sided prisms are usually fashioned in jasper, light-coloured chalcedony and lightly banded carnelian. The workmanship is usually excellent. Largely on stylistic grounds, these seals are datable mostly to MMII (c. 2100–1875 B.C.), although they occur both slightly earlier and later.
