Loading, please wait...
_900x900.jpg "Roman Bronze Reclining Hercules Statuette")
_200x200.jpg "Roman Bronze Reclining Hercules Statuette")
.jpg "Roman Bronze Reclining Hercules Statuette")
LOT 0162
Roman Bronze Reclining Hercules Statuette
2ND-3RD CENTURY A.D.
9 3/4 in. (4.28 kg total, 25 cm wide including stand).
Hollow-formed figure of Hercules resting with his weight on his left arm, cradling his club; lionskin mantle drawn over his head and covering his shoulders, back and thighs; right arm resting on his right thigh, holding a corner of the mantle; scaphoid base with attachment holes; mounted on a custom-made display stand. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom 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.
Cf. for the reclining Hercules in Sieveking, J., Munchner Jarhbuch der bildenten Kunst, N.F.I., 1, Munchen, 1924, 13f.; also Comstock, M., Vermeule Cornelius, Greek, Etruscan & Roman Bronzes in the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, New York, 1971, p.102, no.107, for the image of a recling young Herakles; for a similar Hercules as chariot fitting see cf. V.I.Ignatov, Funeral complexes with carts in the Roman province of Thrace (mid 1st - 3rd century c.), Sofia, 2018, pl.16, no.5.1.2.6.
FootnotesThis bronze was probably a chariot decoration. Hercules is represented here in mature age, bearded and with a cap and body covered by the skin of the Nemean Lion, killed in the first of his labours. This kind of image of Hercules was mainly widespread in the second to third century A.D., when emperors like Commodus and Maximianus Herculius identified themselves as the new Hercules at the top of the Roman state.
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.
-
Romano-Celtic Bronze Statuette of a Warrior Wearing Torc
Circa 1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
Modelled in the round, standing with right leg bent, right arm raised and left extended before the body; with thick tousled hair, exaggerated torc to the neck, jacket with incised vertical lines, tight-fitting trousers and ankle-boots. 53 grams total, 67 mm
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.
The pose of the figure suggests that he is in the action of brandishing a weapon, or possibly holding the reins of a team of horses pulling a chariot. Caesar mentions the expert use of the war-chariot by the Britons (Conquest of Gaul, IV.33). The padded garment suggests a Celtic auxiliary in the Roman army. -
Roman 'Somerset and Devon' Terracotta Roof Tile Fragment Group
2nd-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £46
Irregular fragments of terracotta roof tile, some with ribbing. 1.4 kg total, 7.3-12.1 cm
Found whilst fieldwalking in Somerset and Devon, UK. -
Large Roman Bronze Staff Finial with Bust of Serapis
Circa 2nd century A.D.Estimate: £60,000 - 80,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £27,778
With luxuriant long wavy hair and characteristic vertical locks at the forehead, full beard with two large ringlets below the chin, wearing a chiton and a himation draped over the left shoulder, the head surmounted by a corn modius decorated with olive branch in relief, the bust supported on the back of an eagle standing atop an orb with spread wings, the eagle with its head slightly turned to the left, the feathers finely detailed; a finial from a staff or a ceremonial standard. 1.4 kg, 29.5 cm high
Repaired.
Ex private collection, South Germany, 1980. with Gorny and Mosch, Munich, 13 December 2003, no.74. with Christie's, New York, 8 June 2012, no.239 (US $120,000-180,000). Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.11789-206489.
The Emperor Septimius Severus (193-211 A.D.) modelled many of his portraits based on Serapis. But it was under Hadrian that the refurbishment of the statue in the Serapeum increased the demand for small-scale images, like this one, probably made during his reign and used atop of a processional sceptre or standard for the cult of the god.
