Roman Britain Bronze Phallic Pendant

Comprising a triangular piece, cut and polished on several sides, probably recycled material mined in ancient Roman times between the 1st and 5th centuries A.D.; mounted on a custom-made metal display stand. 5.97 kg total, 38 cm including stand



Acquired on the UK art market since the 1990s. From the private collection of a Somerset gentleman.

Mons Porphyrites (today Jabal Abu Dukhkhan) is the mountainous site of a group of ancient quarries in the Red Sea Hills of the inhospitable eastern desert in Egypt, a five-day trip from the Nile during Roman times. They were discovered by Caius Cominus Leugas in 18 A.D., and during the Roman Empire, the mines officially belonged to the emperor and were the only known source of the Imperial Porphyry, Mons Porphyrites. This dark purple stone was associated with royalty and used for prestigious sculpture and architecture. The location of the mines was lost sometime in the 5th century and rediscovered in the early 19th century. Excavations in the area have revealed the well-preserved quarries and the dwelling places of the quarrymen, and also thousands of ostraca have been discovered containing messages that provide details of how the quarrying took place, and of how the highly skilled quarrymen ordered their food.

Hollow-formed with a broad hoop, lateral facets, an inset cloison with intaglio profile of a youthful male bust. 9.75 grams, 29.29 mm overall, 16.57 x 12.76 mm internal diameter (approximate size British F 1/2, USA 3, Europe 4.3, Japan 4)



Property of a North American gentleman, London, UK, 1990-2010. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13282-253350.

Monofacial openwork finial formed as a serpent entwined and knotted above a pair of spread wings; from a large statue of Mercury (Hermes). 77 grams, 10.7 cm



Found in Colchester in the 1960s. From a late gentleman archaeologist’s collection, thence by family descent.