Loading, please wait...
LOT 0113
Roman Gold Chain with Ball Pendant
5TH CENTURY A.D.
14 3/8 in. (15.02 grams, 36.5 cm long).
Trichinopoly chain with hook-and-eye closure, ball pendant with beaded wire collar.
ProvenanceFrom the collection of a Cambridgeshire lady, UK, 1990s.
LiteratureCf. Spier, J., Byzantium and the West: Jewelry in the First Millennium, London, 2012, fig.14a.2, for identical chain with cross pendant.
FootnotesThe chain is composed of links in the form of pairs of broad, ribbed bands soldered together at a right angle. It is of fine loop-in-loop construction, terminating on one side in a ribbed cap with loops. The chain of ribbed loops placed at right angles is one of several popular varieties introduced in the late Roman period. The ball pendant was very common in Graeco-Roman times, substituted by Christian symbols during the late empire.
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:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
-
Roman 'Essex' Bronze Brooch Collection
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £59
Six brooches of various types, including one example with remains of polychrome enamelling; incomplete. 46 grams total, 22-62 mm
Found Essex, UK. -
Roman Redware Pottery Sherd with Achilles and Thetis
4th-5th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £169
From the upper part of a vessel, displaying a frieze of profile images and figural scenes from Graeco-Roman mythology: a musician in late Roman garments playing a harp (Orpheus?), a seated woman weaving with a distaff in her hand (Penelope?), a kneeling naked woman imploring a naked warrior fighting with shield and spear (Achilles and Thetis?). 202 grams, 18 cm
Acquired 1960s-1990s. From the late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister.
This terra sigillata fragment appears to have been part of a large tray. Elements of dying paganism were still used to celebrate the deeds of the new imperial heroes. Note the detailed late Roman clothing of the harpist, with a chlamys-paludamentum on the right shoulder and the tunic decorated with clavi and orbiculi. -
Roman Glass Spool-Shaped Vessel
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £124
Broadly spool-shaped with a squat body, cylindrical neck and flared rolled rim. 25.6 grams, 53 mm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.