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LOT 0667
Roman Fresco Wall Plaster Collection
1ST CENTURY B.C.
2 5/8 - 4 5/8 in. (527 grams total, 6.7-11.8 cm).
Second style painted in cream and red, some with decoration. [5, No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired in the 19th century.
Ex Jeger collection, Switzerland.
Cf. Hakanen, V., 'VI Wall Plaster Fragments' in Berg, R., Kuivalainen, I., Domus Pompeiana M. Lucretii, IX,3, 5.24, The inscriptions, Works of Art and Finds from the Old and New Excavations, Vantaa, 2019, pp.196-224, figs.3-4.
FootnotesThese small fragments, for analogies with the fragments of Pompeii, seems to belong to the second style of Roman painting, red panels representing highlight and shadow, decorated with vegetal interlaces. Some panels were probably framed by a red grenade fillet. A fragment shows alternate blue and red colour over a cream background, maybe pertinent to a socle.
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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Repoussé pendant with inverted crescent beneath a facing female mask, possibly Diana or Luna, loops above an below. 0.37 grams, 15 mm
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Roman Bronze Gaming Dice
1st-4th century A.D. or laterSold for (Inc. bp): £156
Cuboid with impressed spots disposed 1:6, 2:3, 4:5. 13.8 grams, 12.3 mm
Ex N. Du Quesne Bird collection. Acquired 4 February 1999. From the important private collection of dice and gaming pieces of Colin Narbeth, London, UK, collection no.82. Accompanied by a Colin Narbeth catalogue identification slip. -
Roman Terracotta Oil Lamp with Erotic Scene
Circa 2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,950
Squat burnished pottery lamp with stub nozzle, high-relief scene of two lovers on a couch; maker's mark 'LMVNSVC' to the underside. 64 grams, 95 mm
From the collection of French archaeologist Suzanne Gozlan (1921-2022).
The lamp belongs to the Bailey type B group ii (Loeschke type IV), usually dated from Tiberian to Trajanic times. Erotic lamps were particularly popular before the Christianisation of the Roman Empire. Roman sexuality differed considerably from later Christian European attitudes. Roman religion promoted sexuality as one of the fundamental aspects of prosperity for the entire state; individuals could turn to private religious practice, or even magic, to improve their erotic life or health and reproductive capacity; moreover, prostitution in ancient Rome was legal, public and widespread. Artistic subjects that today we would define without hesitation as pornography, were present among the art collections of the most respectable and high status Roman families.
