Roman Blue and Green Glass Bead Necklace String

Mould-blown with elliptical body, short neck and thick everted rim, with modelled wrinkles imitating the texture of a dried date. 41.7 grams, 80 mm



Dr Gonik & Me Wirth, Geneva, 1970s. Private collection, Europe. 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.12394-226935.

Dates were not only a staple of the Mediterranean diet, used to sweeten food and wine, but also a symbol for the New Year and a fruit often given as a gift on the occasion.

A mixed group of ceramic bullae, tesserae or theatre tokens bearing low-relief motifs, mainly consisting of profile busts of deities. 38 grams total, 15-22 mm



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

The term 'tessera' was used in Roman times to convey the Greek term σύμβολον (token). Small tiles are known as tokens, often shaped like coins, made of metal (copper, lead, iron), clay, bone, wood, or glass, stamped as well as engraved. The tokens, however, are not exclusively coin-shaped, as the Latin term 'tessera' suggests by etymologically referring to a square or at least a four-sided shape and confirmed in several cases by material remains of the past. Tokens and tesserae seem to have been used both in Athens and Rome for the distribution of goods. According to written sources, the term token is identified with credentials of the official authorities. They have also been interpreted as tokens of identity, as entrance tickets to theatre performances, tribunals or assemblies of citizens, archival material of seal engraving, as pawns in games, Charon’s obols and even as amulets.

Comprising a round-section handle with an ovoid applicator and a balustered finial. 4.28 grams, 11.3 cm



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