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LOT 0647
Roman Bronze Triclinium Finial Set
1ST-4TH CENTURY A.D.
3 3/4 - 4 in. (1.18 kg total, 9.6-10.1 cm).
Comprising four bed finials, each with a bell-shaped body and baluster style finial; hollow to base. [4]
ProvenanceAcquired before 2000.
From the collection of a European gentleman living in the UK.
See Cavalieri, M., 'Ipotesi sulla produzione bronzea dell’Emilia occidentale in età romana' in Santoro, S., Artigianato e produzione nella Cisalpina. Parte I. Proposte di metodo e prime applicazioni, Firenze, 2004, pp.173-198, fig.5.
FootnotesThe Romans, like the Greeks, ate whilst reclined on beds. The eating bed (lectus triclinaris) was a luxury furniture item crafted by carpenters. From the 2nd century B.C., Romans started to create 'lecti aerati, inargentati, inaurati, eborati, testudinei,' i.e. beds made of wood and covered with bronze, silver, gold and ivory fittings or with scales of other precious material. Such elements were sometimes sculpted in the shape of an animal protome, or were simply bell-shaped, like our specimens.
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AUCTIONS:
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Roman Bronze Extendable Table Leg
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
Composed of two rectangular-section bars with square-sockets. 2 kg total, 1.07 m
Acquired 1990s-early 2000s. East Anglian private collection.
These bars were one of the four supports of a folding table with a height-adjustable frame, often surmounted by busts of divinities. These folding supports for tables, bracers and cauldrons are known finds from important excavations in the Roman world, like Pompeii. The purpose of such folding stands varied; during a meal they were placed between the triclinium beds with bowls and plates hung to the hooks at the back of the holders. -
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Romano-British Bronze Adlocutio Type Repousse Brooch
2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,340
Imitating Hadrian's sestertius adlocutio, the emperor with a companion (or Castor and Pollux) on horseback, one of the horsemen holding a round shield; arrayed legions in front of them wearing crested helmets, raised spears and quadrangular shields; legionary eagle in the foreground; the scene enclosed within a rope border; pin lugs and catchplate to the reverse. 12.9 grams, 33 mm
From a Cambridgeshire, UK, collection, 1990s. This brooch is an extreme rarity and is believed to be the finest known example. 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.11747-202502.
These brooches were a mystery until one was excavated at Wiggonholt, Sussex, together with three other damaged specimens now in the Devizes Museum, all from Wiltshire (more precisely Cold Kitchen Hill). The image of the original coin was slightly modified. The local craftsman improved the coin type making his brooch more interesting, transforming the Emperor Hadrian on horseback into two cavalrymen, probably the sacred Dioscuri, while the Roman Aquila, symbol of the legions, was taken from the top of the signa and placed in the foreground. -
Roman Bronze Lock Bolt
1st-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £7
The rectangular plate with differently sized horizontal and vertical extensions, five sub-square perforations. 19.3 grams, 60 mm
Acquired on the London art market, 1980s-1990s.
This bolt would originally have been associated with a tumbler mechanism; the matching teeth of a slide key would slide into the cut-outs of the bolt replacing the tumblers and allowing the bolt to be drawn.
