Roman Bronze Hippocampus and Dolphin Statuette

2ND-3RD CENTURY A.D. OR LATER

5 1/8 in. (480 grams total, 13 cm wide including stand).

Comprising a hippocampus with raised head, arched neck and forelegs extended, curved body coiling sideways and with trefoil finial; beneath its chest, a dolphin with lateral raised panels for eyes, the nose forming a point of attachment; possibly a bowl mount with the dolphin's nose attached and the hippocamp's hooves resting on the rim; mounted on a custom-made stand. [No Reserve]

Provenance

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.

Published

Exhibited at the Harwich Museum, Harwich, Essex, UK, 19th June-9th September 2024; accompanied by a copy of a photograph of the artefacts on display.

Literature

Cf. Boucher, S., Inventaire des Collections Publiques Françaises - 17 Vienne: Bronzes Antiques, Paris, 1971, items 82, 83, 303.

CONDITION

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LOT 0691