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LOT 0093
Roman Carnelian Bezel Fragment with Sphinx
2ND-3RD CENTURY A.D.
5/8 in. (0.99 grams, 15 mm).
Once forming a part of a ring carved from a single piece of carnelian, polished and displaying the mythical creature advancing left on a groundline; accompanied by a museum-quality impression.
ProvenanceUK private collection before 2000.
UK art market.
Property of a London gentleman.
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AUCTIONS:
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Roman Bronze Plaque with Eros on Lion
Circa 2nd-4th century A.D.Estimate: £1,500 - 2,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £600
Modelled in relief with openwork elements, stylised detailing to both figures; hollow reverse. 182 grams, 10.2 cm high
Acquired 1990s-early 2000s. East Anglian private collection.
Hollow cast bronze images of Eros riding a lion are linked to the Eastern Levant and have been found for example in Tamna, probably a Roman import. The importance of the long-distance contacts within the Eastern Mediterranean areas was rapidly reflected in provincial artistic styles, probably as soon as in Hellenistic times, at the beginning of the third century B.C., possibly even earlier. The unquestionable Greek influence led a number of scholars to define three main styles for the bronzes discovered in the eastern Roman provinces: a local type and iconography locally produced, Greek or Roman imports, and Oriental, Hellenistic, or Roman style, locally produced. -
Roman Bronze Scallop Shell Attachment Pair
Circa 2nd-3rd century A.D.Estimate: £2,000 - 3,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £833
Each composed of shell-shaped body with a D-shaped lug to reverse, the lug with tapering spike to the centre. 343 grams total, 12.5 cm each
Private collection, Rosenheim, Germany, 1960s.
This pair could have been used as a double key or door lock, based on comparison with some keys from the territory of Gaul (Boucher, 1971, pp.200-201). They comprised a strong ring with polygonal-section stem and a rectangular point. -
Roman Bone Dice Pair
2nd-4th century A.D. or laterSold for (Inc. bp): £208
With ring-and dot markings disposed 1:6, 2:5, 3:4 7.7 grams total, 12-13 mm
Ex collection of a UK gentleman formed in the 1990s. From the collection of Surrey, UK, gentleman.
