Large Greek Bronze Bow Brooch

Matched pair of hollow-formed pendants, each a bull's head modelled in the round with a rosette to the rear beneath the loop. 5.39 grams total, 23-24 mm



Acquired in 1986. with Taisei Gallery, Gold & Silver Auction, Part II, Ancient to Renaissance, 5 November 1992, The Conrad Salon, The Waldorf-Astoria, New York, no.165. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.11969-210472. 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.

In Cyprus, the cult of the bull developed from the 3rd millennium B.C. until the 6th century B.C. The bull was a 'frequently invoked manifestation of divinity', and its cult was widespread since the Minoan Age. The appearance of gold bull-head pendants in tombs had an aesthetic and social value, but at the same time it also had a deeper symbolic and religious meaning.

Circular with an open oil-chamber divided into three compartments with a central omphalos, three semi-circular nozzles projecting from each compartment bridging over the wick rests; flat base with a central hole for support. 2.61 kg, 22 cm



Ex HAC, Basel, Switzerland, 1990s. with Galerie Rhéa, Zurich, Switzerland. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

With short stem and broad bowl with carination at the shoulder; two strap handles with an ivy-leaf with tendrils and volutes underneath; the underside of the bowl with a frieze of four satyrs and four maenads performing a dance, the maenads dressed in fancy Ionian dress, long peplos and himation, and a kekrykephalos (hair net) on their heads, and holding a thyrsus in their right hands; the centre of the cup showing dancing Silenus and a nymph, dressed in a similar manner and holding a thyrsus, border of meanders and chequered squares surrounding; restored. 875 grams, 37 cm wide



Ex Dr Gonik and the late Mr Wirth, 1960-1970s. Private collection, Switzerland. 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.12573-232109. 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.

Silenus, the only individualised satyr, was a companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus, and he is represented here in the place of honour. He is typically older than the satyrs of the Dionysian retinue (thiasos) and his representation on the tondo symbolises respect towards his senior position.