Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 0143
Roman Bronze Hunchback Grotesque Statuette
1ST CENTURY B.C.-1ST CENTURY A.D.
3 5/8 in. (130 grams, 93 mm).
Modelled in the round, sitting nude with head turned, arms and legs bent; wearing a brimmed cap with a feather in the crown; the spine and sternum modelled protruding, large, impressed eyes, genitals protruding below the crossed legs.
Provenance
Acquired from Helios Ancient Art, Mayfair, London, UK, circa 1986.
From a privately held London, UK, collection from the 1980s-1990s.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13276-253965.
Literature
Cf. Rolland, H., Bronzes Antiques de Haute Provence, Paris, 1965, item 196; see also Cèbe, J.B., La caricature et la parodie dans le monde romain antique des origines à Juvénal, Bibliothèque des Écoles françaises d'Athènes et de Rome, 206, Paris, De Boccard, 1966; Dunand, F., Terres cuites gréco-romaines d'Égypte, Paris, Musée du Louvre, département des antiquités égyptiennes; Réunion des musées nationaux, 1990; Ewigleben, C., von Grumbkow, J. (Hrsg.), Götter, Gräber & Grotesken. Tonfiguren aus dem Alltagsleben im römischen Ägypten, Bilderhefte des Museums für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, 25, Hamburg, Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, 1991.
Footnotes
Such small bronzes with physical abnormalities and exaggerated features served as entertainment, but also had the function of warding off evil.
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 0143
Roman Bronze Hunchback Grotesque Statuette
Estimate £3,000 - 4,000€3,480 - 4,640 (for guidance only)$4,050 - 5,400 (for guidance only)
RELATED LOTS
-
Romano-British Pottery Sherd Collection from Crococolana
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £26
A mixed group of pottery fragments from vessels and other items. 3.59 kg total, 36-64 mm
Found at the Roman settlement of Crococolana, Brough, Lincolnshire, UK, 2003-2005. Ian Wilkinson collection, Nottinghamshire, UK, formed since 1985. This group is for UK buyers only. -
Roman Bronze Brooch and Artefact Collection
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £72
Comprising: a discoid brooch with two animals and a male head on the perimeter; an enamelled brooch with a raised central boss and a loop on the outer edge; a domed mount with enamelled fields and radiating bosses on the outer edge, two T-shaped lugs on the reverse; a small coin(?) with a profile bust on the obverse and a seated figure on the reverse. 25.1 grams total, 9.6-26 mm
From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
Late Roman Terracotta Lamp with Christian Fish
5th-6th century A.D.Estimate: £1,000 - 1,400 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £500
Low discus with two filler holes flanking a low-relief fish in profile, a band of arched fish to the shoulder, lug handle to the rear and a low basal ring. 146 grams, 14.5 cm
Private collection, Tokyo, Japan, 1980s. Private European collection, 2010.
The so-called Christian lamps in Terra Sigillata Africana (TSA) have been classified by Hayes into two major types, I and II. Lamps of Hayes types I and II, initially produced in Tunisia only, were broadly exported, then imitated throughout the Roman Empire for three centuries; consequently, they are extremely numerous.
