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LOT 0732
Roman Bone Gaming Dice Pair
1ST-4TH CENTURY A.D.
3/8 in. (2.9 grams total, 8.5-9.8 mm).
Each cuboid in form with ring-and-dot markings disposed: 1:6, 2:5, 3:4. [2, No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom the important private collection of dice and gaming pieces of Colin Narbeth, London, UK, collection no.47.
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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Roman Bronze Eagle on Bull's Head Statuette
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £169
Comprising an altar with a severed head of a bull on the top and an eagle perching on it; hollow to the underside, four stub feet to the angles. 46.4 grams, 58 mm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
The image of an eagle on the severed head of a bull was probably connected with the cult of Jupiter Dolichenus. -
Romano-Celtic Bronze Statuette of a Warrior Wearing Torc
Circa 1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
Modelled in the round, standing with right leg bent, right arm raised and left extended before the body; with thick tousled hair, exaggerated torc to the neck, jacket with incised vertical lines, tight-fitting trousers and ankle-boots. 53 grams total, 67 mm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
The pose of the figure suggests that he is in the action of brandishing a weapon, or possibly holding the reins of a team of horses pulling a chariot. Caesar mentions the expert use of the war-chariot by the Britons (Conquest of Gaul, IV.33). The padded garment suggests a Celtic auxiliary in the Roman army. -
Roman Inked Wooden Tablet, a Legal Document from the Rascotiano Estate
4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £13,000
A reused tablet with a recessed panel on one side, the last tablet of a legal document which consisted of two (diptychon) or three tablets (triptychon); ten black inked lines of New Roman cursive script, the end of a record of a transaction in a highly formulaic legal language, confirmed between heirs and elders (heredes et seniores), negotiated on an estate called Rascotiano; one edge irregular, pierced for addition of a thong or string. 23.7 grams, 12.3 x 12.5 cm
From an important London collection since 1975. Accompanied by a collection of eighteen 1970s photographs of the the tablet.
The contract follows standard Roman legal formulae.
