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LOT 0339
Large Marble Relief with Roman-Era Scene of a Boy Presenting a Scroll
18TH-19TH CENTURY A.D.
34 1/2 in. (127 kg total including stand, 87.5 cm high).
Rectangular scene with ledge to lower edge; high-relief carved scene depicting a standing male in loosely draped toga, holding the upper edge of a papyrus scroll; beside him, a small boy in similar attire holding the lower two corners of the document; legend in seriffed Roman capitals 'VICTORIAE / AVGVSTO / RE[...]' (to Victoria, to Augustus, ...).
ProvenancePrivate collection, UK.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13393-259011.
Cf. for an original image of a boy with a scroll, see the Walters Art Museum, accession no.71.54; a fresco of a Roman pupil reading a scroll, in Naples, Archaeological Museum, ID AKG300539.
FootnotesThe relief recalls the images of the Propaganda Augusti, diffused by Julius Caesar Octavian after his victory over Marcus Antonius and Cleopatra at Actium. The aged man and the boy represent the old and new Roman world meeting in the Principate created by Augustus.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0339
Large Marble Relief with Roman-Era Scene of a Boy Presenting a Scroll
Estimate £6,000 - 8,000€6,960 - 9,280 (for guidance only)$8,100 - 10,800 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£3,000 (EUR 3,480; USD 4,050) +BP*
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Grand Tour Glass Gemstone with Philosopher in Gilt Metal Seal
18th century A.D.Estimate: £150 - 200 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £75
Comprising an openwork metal frame with a loop, set with a dark red glass intaglio with a seated mature man gazing downwards and dressed in voluminous robes. 6.67 grams, 29 mm
UK private collection, acquired on the English art market in the 2000s. -
Silver-Gilt Mounted Jet 'Figa' Amulet
Spain, 17th century A.D.Estimate: £600 - 800 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £300
Formed as a hand showing figa gesture, silver mount with applied twisted wires; attachment loop and ring to the top. 19.6 grams, 56 mm
Private collection, Europe. Acquired on the English art market.
Mano Fico, as protective amulets, have been used since antiquity. It was believed to protect from the evil eye and other dark and magical forces and to promote fertility. In ancient Rome, the fig sign, or mano fico, was made by the pater familias (father of the family) to ward off the evil spirits of the dead as a part of the Lemuria ritual. The ancient Greeks wore amulets of the gesture around the neck to protect from the evil eye, and also used the gesture in artwork. What they considered an overtly sexual gesture was expected to distract evil spirits from causing harm. The pendant would have been worn from a belt or from a chatelaine containing other protective talismans. This carving would have served as a token representing a person's pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, one of the very few places in which jet can be found and mined since at least the Middle Ages. -
Post Medieval Agate Cameo of a Classical Muse in Gold Mount
Italy, 18th century A.D.Estimate: £700 - 900 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £350
Gold cell with suspension loop, inset banded agate panel with reserved female profile bust with hair in a chignon. 7.8 grams, 38 mm
Private collection, Europe. Acquired on the English art market.
