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LOT 0131
Roman Bronze Statuette of a Germanic Captive
LATE 2ND CENTURY A.D.
2 1/2 in. (93 grams total, 62 mm including stand).
Modelled with arms held behind the back, legs astride and left knee bent, head angled upwards over the right shoulder; the trousers and sleeves with incised crosshatched pattern, plain shoes; the hair drawn up in the 'Swabian knot' style above the right ear; 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. Rolland, H., Bronzes Antiques de Haute Provence, Paris, 1965, item 321; Beutler, F. et al., Der Adler Roms. Carnuntum und der Armee der Cäsaren, Bad-Deutsch Altenberg, 2017, item 1005, for similar.
FootnotesStatuettes of foreign ‘barbarian’ prisoners of this type have been found along the Danube. Their spread coincides with the Marcomannic wars of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius. The Swabian knot in this warrior’s hair has parallels with the warrior depicted on the contemporary Sarcophagus of Portonaccio, which represents a battle between Romans and Germanic Gauls.
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:
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LOT 0131
Roman Bronze Statuette of a Germanic Captive
Sold for (Inc. bp): £975
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Roman Bronze Star-Shaped Plate Brooch
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
With enamelled central panel to obverse, fronds and scrolls, studs to the arms. 12.1 grams, 42 mm
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of Surrey, UK, gentleman. -
Very Large Roman Bronze Oil Lamp with Actor's Mask
1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £5,720
With an elongated body and a long nozzle with a rounded tip; raised rim enclosing the upper face with an ivy lef-shaped filling hole; wide handle terminating to a female tragic mask with a palmette below the chin, the hair dressed in ringlets with two rows of curls to the brow, eyes inlaid with silver; accompanied by a custom-made display stand. 1.97 kg, 28 cm wide (4.31 kg total, 27.5 cm high including stand)
Old private British collection, pre-1965. Property of a gentleman; acquired in the UK before 2000. Accompanied by a copy of an old black and white photograph and 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 a search certificate number no.12033-215424.
The lamp is of Loeschke type XX (Walters type 6), with many of these lamps made in Italy, but some are also found in the East. The tragic mask appears frequently on lamp handles, probably as an apotropaic subject. The mask was an inseparable element of unity with the past and religious context. -
Roman Brown Ware Ribbed Jug
Circa 2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £124
Conical in profile with dimple base, ribbed lower body, ledge to the shoulder, strap handle, thick rim. 254 grams, 14.6 cm
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.
