Roman Carnelian Gemstone with Goatherd and Goat

With squat oblate body, tubular neck with occlusion at the lower end and flared returned rim, pontil base. 44.8 grams, 70 mm



Acquired from Allan Cherry, Bournemouth, UK, 2004. Ian Wilkinson collection, Nottinghamshire, UK.

Standing contrapposto with his weight on his right leg and the left leg brought slightly forward; the musculature of the torso displaying well-defined pectoral muscles, prominent abdominal muscles and wide shoulders, the back with equally toned musculature and well-formed rounded buttocks; the veining of the marble accentuating the idealised anatomy; the now-absent head was most probably turned towards the supporting leg and the left arm would have been raised; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 42.95 kg total, 64 cm high including stand



Formerly in a French private collection in Compiègne, since the 1960s. Acquired from Galerie Chenel, 2015. Accompanied by a copy of a French cultural passport no.166817. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Laura Maria Vigna.

The model of the sculpture recalls the Polykleitian tradition. In particular, the tension of the muscles of the athletic body recalls the Doryphoros of Polykleitos, a famous bronze sculpture erected in Argos in around 450-440 B.C., as evidenced by a stele found there. The statue represented a hero, perhaps Achilles, or a winning athlete. Many Hellenistic and Roman copies of this sculpture are preserved, most notably in marble. These include the Tiberian-era Doryphoros in the National Museum of Naples, from Pompeii, the nude male statue, a copy of the Doryphoros of Polykleitos, in the Doria Pamphilj Collection, dated to the end of the 1st century A.D. The raised left shoulder is reminiscent of the Diadumenos, a work by the same artist made in Argos in around 430-420 B.C., depicting an athlete girding his head with ribbons or fillets, a symbol of victory, known from many copies. The Polykleitos original and the subsequent copies were enormously popular and became canonical representations of physical perfection and refinement.

Domed in profile with concentric stepped tiers and hatched fur texture, central lion-mask with lateral piercings for the muzzle, slightly flared rim; lead plug to interior. 168 grams, 55 mm



Found Wiltshire, UK, before 1974.