Details

LOT 0685

Roman Fresco Wall Plaster Collection

1ST CENTURY A.D.

3 1/8 - 4 1/2 in. (966 grams total, 8.1-11.6 cm).

Fragments of wall plaster with rendered surface painted with mainly red, pale blue and white detailing; some with impression of timber laths to the reverse. [5, No Reserve]

Provenance

Acquired in the 19th century.
Ex Jeger collection, Switzerland.
UK gallery, early 2000s.

Published

Exhibited at the Harwich Museum, Harwich, Essex, UK, 27th August-10th December 2025; accompanied by a copy of a photograph of the artefacts on display.

Literature

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.

Footnotes

These small fragments, for analogies with the fragments of Pompeii, seem 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.