Loading, please wait...
LOT 0675
Roman Bronze Lamp with Theatrical Mask
1ST-2ND CENTURY A.D.
5 1/4 in. (220 grams, 13.3 cm).
Nozzle with quasi-volutes, theatrical mask surrounding the central opening; ring-handle with palmette attachment; base moulded.
ProvenanceAcquired from Weber, Kohl.
Ex private collection, Rhemish, Germany.
with Gorny & Mosch, 14 December 2010, lot 499.
Private collection, Europe.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.11800-206492.
Cf. Walters, H.B., Catalogue of the Greek and Roman lamps in the British Museum, London, 1914, no.1468, for the type.
FootnotesThe principal parts of a lamp were the body or reservoir which contained the oil (infundibulum); the flat circular top (discus) on which the design, if any, was placed, sometimes with an ornamented rim (margo), the nozzle, with a hole for the insertion of the wick (rostrum, nasus, myxus), the wick, known as ellydinium, the handle (ansa, manubrium).
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:
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.
-
.jpg)
Roman Glass Pendant Pair
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £52
A pair of bullae with integral loops, both showing iridescence. 1.29 grams total, 15-16 mm
Collected from 1970-1999. From the collection of the late Mr S.M., London, UK.
Freeborn Roman boys wore bullae until they reached adulthood, being given them eight days after their birth, on the same day that they were named. This important marked boys acceptance into the family. Bullae made of gold would only have been affordable to the members of the elite, whilst the lower classes wore pendants made of less expensive materials. The feminine equivalent was a lunar (crescentic) pendant. -
Roman Glass Toilet Bottle
1st century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £195
With globular body, short everted rim and cylindrical neck, concave base. 73 grams, 10 cm
Ex London, UK, collection, 1980-1990s.
The bottle should be associated with Isings form 6 or Tommaso type 7. Small bottles of this typology are among the earliest known blown glass. The everted rim seems to distinguish examples made in Italy and the western Mediterranean provinces from those of the Eastern Mediterranean, on which the rim is usually folded in the form of a flange. -
Roman Bronze Military Belt Mount Collection
4th-5th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
Comprising: an amphora-shaped strap end decorated with rings and dots, the centre ornamented by a star surrounded by small dots and circles; a shield-shaped strap end, with a concave crescent on each side; an openwork decorated fitting with a kidney shaped motif in each quarter; a shield-shaped decorated strap end, with kidney-shaped openwork design; and a propeller shaped mount. 75 grams total, 29-66 mm
From the collection of the famous author, writer and speaker, Gordon Bailey, Essex, UK; formed since 1968.
In Britain like in all of the West, all the elements intended for the embellishment of belts and harnesses also evolved towards new forms, the geometry of which bears witness to strong Germanic influences. Beside the typical propeller stiffener belts (Richborough), probably of Danubian origin, we have less ornate wide-belt types, represented by the Winchester example. Belt-plaques of triangular shape, often gilded, beast-shaped at the extremity, were excavated in the south of Britain (Cirencester). Rigid belt-plates with the buckle shaped like a dolphin came from Richborough, Wye and Sleaford (class 3, type B, Sommer), Tripontium, Mucking, Wycombe, Alwalton (type I-B, Hawkes, also in Richborough) and type Mainz, Savgar, Totanés (Colchester, often with associated propeller stiffeners). Type Hawkes I-A and I-B present similarities with the Simancas typologies, found in Lankhills. The type Tirig is attested at Lydney Park, the Böhme A in Richborough. Strap ends are usually heart-shaped or amphora-shaped (Richborough). These belt fittings were characteristic of the Roman army in Britain at the beginning of the 5th century.
