Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 0129
Roman Bronze Horse Collection
1ST-4TH CENTURY A.D.
1 - 2 in. (235 grams total, 24-51 mm).
Four horse head mounts modelled with naturalistic and semi-naturalistic detailing; one standing figure wearing a saddle and head collar. [5]
Provenance
‘The Ancient Menagerie Collection’ formerly the property of a Cambridgeshire lady, collected since the 1990s and acquired from auctions and dealers throughout Europe and the USA, now ex London collection.
CONDITIONVETTING:
TimeLine 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:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
LOT 0129
Roman Bronze Horse Collection
Estimate £600 - 800€700 - 930 (for guidance only)$810 - 1,080 (for guidance only)
RELATED LOTS
-
Roman Bronze Lock Bolt
1st-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £7
The rectangular plate with differently sized horizontal and vertical extensions, five sub-square perforations. 19.3 grams, 60 mm
Acquired on the London art market, 1980s-1990s.
This bolt would originally have been associated with a tumbler mechanism; the matching teeth of a slide key would slide into the cut-outs of the bolt replacing the tumblers and allowing the bolt to be drawn. -
.jpg)
Large Roman Fragmentary Cameo with Face
3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,690
Carved in high-relief in (likely) agate; sympathetically mounted on a naturalistic base; chipped; mounted by the late Alison Barker in her own inimitable style. 95 grams, 55 mm
Acquired 1960s-1990s. Late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister. -
Roman Bronze Phallic Mask Pendant
1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £416
Displaying the face of a bearded god, possibly Cernunnos or Pan, with curly hair and two horns in the shape of phallus; suspension ring to the top. 25.6 grams, 45 mm
Acquired in the 1990s. Ex property of a UK gentleman.
The head displays typical features associated with Romano-Celtic art, such as the lentoid eyes and the schematic rendering of the hair and beard. The head could be that of Pan, god of the wild countryside and of fertility in nature, thus making the phalli-shaped horns appropriate. It could also represent the Celtic god Cernunnos, a Gallic deity whose worship is known from Britain and the Continent from a number of monuments, inscriptions and figurines, as well as on the famous Gundestrup cauldron found in a bog in Denmark. His name means "the Horned One", and is depicted as a bearded male wearing a torc around his neck and with large horns or antlers on his head. Representations of him are known from as early as the fourth century B.C. from the Paspardo rock carving at Val Camonica, Northern Italy. Other representations include the monument set up by Parisian sailors which was discovered underneath Notre Dame cathedral, and the relief carving from Cirencester where his legs are in the form of two snakes. The Celts' preoccupation with fecundity caused them on occasions to represent their male gods with oversized phalli, and a bronze figure of Mercury from Tongres, France, depicts the god with two phalli on his head.
