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LOT 0108
Roman Inked Wooden Legal Document
LATE 4TH CENTURY A.D.
5 x 3 in. (19.91 grams, 12.5 x 7.5 cm).
With a recessed panel on one side and scored frame with securing hole to one long side; seven lines of inked text in Roman cursive containing
the record of a legal document in a formulaic legal language; two part-lines of cursive text to reverse; supplied with two monochrome photographs of the tablet displaying the text to advantage. [No Reserve]
From an important London collection since 1975.
Accompanied by a collection of two 1970s photographs of the the tablet.
Cf. Rothenhöfer, P., Blänsdorf, Jürgen, Sana mente sanaque memoria testa-mentum feci: Eine testamentarische Verfügung vom 12. April 340 n. Chr., Gephyra 13, 2016, pp.153-163; Rothenhöfer, P., Neues zum Testament des Pomponius Maximus aus dem Jahr 371 n. Chr., (forthcoming); see also Masi Doria, C., Dal testamento di Pomponius Maximus: prospettive del diritto ereditario tardo antico, in: Isola, L. (ed.), Klauselgestaltungen in Römischen Testamenten, Berlin, 2022, pp.151-175; also see Thomas, J. D., Vindolanda: The Latin Writing Tablets, Britannia Monograph Series No 4, London, 1983, for examples of wooden tabulae re-used as writing surfaces; for examples of testamentary documents on wooden tablets that have survived, see FIRA III, p.47, for Anthony Silvanus from 142 AD, also see BGU VII 1695 for Safinnius Herminus; for another from Transfynydd, North Wales, see Arch. Camb. 150, pp.143-156; and see Bowman, A.K., Life and letters on the Roman frontier : Vindolanda and its people, London, 1994, for discussion of the uses of Roman writing tablets. Rothenhoefer, P., Neue römische Rechtsdokumente aus dem Byzacena-Archiv / New Roman Legal Documents from the Byzacena Archive, (forthcoming). The contract follows standard Roman legal formulae.
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
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The upper body draped with an upper part of an exomis, twisted on the shoulder and falling softly on the back; the right breast still visible, as well as the attachment portion of the neck. 7.95 kg, 23 cm wide
Acquired by the current owner in Munich, Germany, 1990s. English private collection.
The way in which the exomis is twisted on the left shoulder and the presence of the exposed right breast could indicate that the original statue was that of an Amazon, with particular reference to the Amazon from the Albertoni collection in Rome, which has now disappeared. -
Roman Ceramic Oil Lamp with Reflector
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Shallow discus with concentric circles and a raised pellets, a lug on each side of the nozzle; triangular reflector with foliate; concentric circles to the base; repaired. 90 grams, 11.9 cm
Ex Mothersole collection, Scotland, 1970s. -
Roman Glass Toilet Bottle
1st century B.C.-1st century A.D.Estimate: £150 - 200 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £83
With globular body, everted rim, cylindrical neck, rounded shoulder merging with concave wall, rounded base. 61 grams, 14 cm
Ex London, UK, collection, 1980-1990s.
This toilet bottle could be associated with the Isings form 6 and De Tommaso type 7. These small bottles 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.
