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LOT 0968
Roman Glass Toilet Bottle
1ST CENTURY A.D.
4 in. (73 grams, 10 cm).
With globular body, short everted rim and cylindrical neck, concave base.
ProvenanceEx London, UK, collection, 1980-1990s.
LiteratureCf. Whitehouse, D., Roman Glass in the Corning Museum of Glass, vol.1, New York, 1997, item 190, for the type.
FootnotesThe bottle should be associated with Isings form 6 or Tommaso type 7. Small bottles of this typology are among the earliest known blown glass. The everted rim seems to distinguish examples made in Italy and the western Mediterranean provinces from those of the Eastern Mediterranean, on which the rim is usually folded in the form of a flange.
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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Roman Bronze Silenus Rider Figurine
1st-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £845
Modelled in the round as a figure of a nude male with legs spread as if bestriding a horse; the bald head tilted an turned towards the right shoulder, with pointed ears, fleshy features and a full beard; a textile covering draped around the right thigh and lower body gathered in the left hand; the legs spread and feet dangling, with later holes for attachment pegs; the right arm extended perpendicular to the body and the hand bent round; the base of the spine with vestigial tail and the cloth draped as if on a horse's rump; mounted on a custom-made stand. 200 grams, 98 mm (362 grams total, 14 cm high including stand)
London art market, 1992.
The figure represents either Silenus himself, the aged and semi-bestial companion of Dionysus, or a Seilenos - a member of the feral group of which he was the leader. The attitude of the figure, with the right arm extended and the head tilted, suggests that there should have been an accompanying female figure to whom Silenus was paying full attention. As a devotee of Dionysus, Silenus is often shown with Bacchantes, female celebrants in the cult of wine-drinking, music and other pleasurable pursuits. -
Roman Bronze Helmet Handle
1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £104
Comprising a crescentic tapering shank with ribbed baluster to the centre; attachment points formed as wings with punched detailing. 65 grams, 92 mm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
Many such handles are formed as a pair of opposed dolphins, whence the conventional name 'dolphin mounts'. They were attached to infantry helmets so that they could be carried when not in use, or slung from a strap. -
Roman Bronze Dolphin Furniture Mount
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
Formed with undulating profile, flange base with dentilled edge and fixing spike, mouth terminating in a triangular support pad. 36.5 grams, 86 mm
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of Surrey, UK, gentleman.
