Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 0788
Roman Bronze Statuette of Mercury
2ND-3RD CENTURY A.D.
3 3/8 in. (66 grams total, 85 mm including stand).
Standing nude with winged petasos to the head, in contrapposto pose; mounted on a custom-made display stand. [No Reserve]
Provenance
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.
Literature
Cf. Boucher, S. & Tassinari, S., Musée de la Civilisation Gallo-Romaine a Lyon: Bronzes Antiques I. Inscriptions, Statuaire, Vaisselle, Lyon, 1976, item 49, for type.
Footnotes
Mercury was the god of trade and industry, whose principle shrine in the city of Rome was at the Circus Maximus. Equated with the Greek Hermes he became the god of tradesmen and merchants. He was also the god of thieves and was associated with healing, mainly in Gaul, where he had a number of important temples connected to sacred springs, This statuette was probably a votive offering to one of this temples.
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.
RELATED LOTS
-
Roman Bronze Square Bell
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
With integral loop and four spurs to the lower edge. 136 grams, 81 mm
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of Surrey, UK, gentleman. -
Roman Bronze Statuette of Triton Sounding a Horn
1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £442
Bare-chested with fish-tail extending to the rear, raising a periwinkle-shell horn to his lips; left arm supporting a ship under sail; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 65 grams total, 64 mm including stand
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 small statuette was possibly part of a scene representing Poseidon and Amphitrite. The riches of the sea and the dangers of navigation were merged by the ancients into a famous myth known as the wedding procession between Poseidon and the Nereid Amphitrite. Involved in the procession were nereids, tritons and hippocampi. -
Roman Hardstone Hand Amulet
1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £286
An amuletic arm with hand in the fica gesture, bulb and loop above. 2.49 grams, 35 mm
with Hotel des Ventes, Drouot, Paris, France. From the collection of Mr H. Naudy, Paris, France. Acquired at between 2004-2010. Property of a French collector.
Small amulets of hands were commonly included in bracelets. They served not only as decorative pieces but also as symbols of protection for the limbs and extremities of their wearers. Some believed these amulets could even confer abilities such as increased dexterity or heightened creativity.
