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LOT 0392
Renaissance Gold Pendant with Agate Gemstone of Cupid
ITALY, LATE 16TH-EARLY 17TH CENTURY A.D.
3 in. (13.53 grams, 75 mm).
Cupid shown standing amid the vegetation, his wings and arms spread and holding two short staffs in his hands, clouds and the sun above; set in a gold frame with a conical pendant drop below; supplied with a museum-quality impression.
ProvenanceAcquired on the European art market.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13341-257981.
Cf. two similar examples in the British Museum, bequeathed by Sir Hans Sloane in 1753, museum nos.SLBCameos.4 & SLBCameos.138; AG Wien III, 2703.
FootnotesThe cameo shows a Cupid in the same style as the one in the British Museum Sloane collection. Cupid was a very popular motif in 17th-century Italian artistic production. The presence of Cupid on the cameo implies amorous attachment, or sometimes, amorous conflict. The cameo shows a sophisticated atmosphere, relayed in the brown and grey colours.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0392
Renaissance Gold Pendant with Agate Gemstone of Cupid
Estimate £2,000 - 3,000€2,320 - 3,480 (for guidance only)$2,700 - 4,050 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£1,000 (EUR 1,160; USD 1,350) +BP*
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Spanish Silver-Gilt Cross Pendant
20th century A.D.Estimate: £30 - 40 (+bp*)
Bids: 3 | Current Bid: £30
Hollow-formed with hexagonal-section arms, each with a raised collar bearing an incised legend 'ME DU CI TO CE LOS' and granule finial; granules between the arms; blackletter legend 'CLUNY' vertically and 'a vol duci' horizontally; suspension ring. 33.32 grams, 59 mm
Ex Cornish collection, UK. Property of a London, UK, antiquarian.
The Abbaye de Cluny is a site of pilgrimage, a former Benedictine monastery. -
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Cylinder Seal Electrotype Group
Late 19th-early 20th century A.D.Estimate: £40 - 60 (+bp*)
Bids: 1 | Current Bid: £5
Of academic interest, copper coated lead seal impressions taken from cylinder seals, containing various different motifs. 231 grams total, 27-47 mm
Possibly made by the British Museum. From a West Country, UK, private collection. -
Large Marble Relief with Three Figures
18th-19th century A.D.Estimate: £5,000 - 7,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £2,500
Rectangular slab with raised border and high-relief scene; three standing females wearing floor-length draped and tiered robes, holding hands; the left figure with right hand extended slightly, holding out the folds of her robe, head turned back towards the middle figure whose hand she holds; middle figure facing with diadem in her neatly dressed hair, holding the extended hand of the third figure holding the hem of her robe and angled stiffly away from the others. 145 kg total including stand, 106.5 cm wide
Private collection, UK. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13391-259010.
A group of three young females is often interpreted as the Three Graces. However, in classical art, these three figures usually stand close together and are nude or sparsely clothed - unlike the females in this carving. Groups of three goddesses - such as Persephone, Demeter and Hekate - may denote the phases of the moon or, more broadly, the three phases of a female life as maiden / mother/ elder. The scene bears some resemblance to the 1st century AD relief of 'Three dancing nymphs' in Santa Barbara Museum of Art, California; however, that has a more exuberant and lively air contrasted with the rigid formality of the piece.
