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LOT 0628
Roman Lead Sealing with Bust of an Emperor
3RD-4TH CENTURY A.D.
1/4 in. (2.3 grams, 13 mm).
A round lead seal with male portrait, wearing a military mantle fastened on the right side by a fibula, three Latin letters on the left side, possibly 'I A A'. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired in the 1970s.
Important European collection.
Cf. Beutler, F. et al., Der Adler Roms. Carnuntum und der Armee der Cäsaren, Bad-Deutsch Altenberg, 2017, items 625-630, for type.
FootnotesLead seals were used to seal documents. The sealing shows a facing male head with a bearded face, probably the portrait of a Roman emperor or a high imperial functionary, like a Dux or a Praefectus. The hairstyle is that of the Dominate, or late 3rd century AD.
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 Figure of a Boy in Oriental Dress
1st-2nd century A.D.Estimate: £1,000 - 1,400 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £500
A bronze figure of a child sitting with one leg extended and the other bent beneath the body, arms raised in supplication; loose fitting trousers and knee-length tunic gathered at the waist, boots on the feet and a separate pointed hood on the head; Scythian or similar costume. 14.6 grams, 61 mm
Private Swiss collection, acquired 2001. -
Roman Statuette of the Goddess Fortuna
1st-2nd century A.D.Estimate: £2,000 - 3,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £1,000
A bronze statuette of the goddess Fortuna, modelled in the round standing on a circular plinth base, her feet emerging from beneath her floor length robes, her hair held in a chignon at the back of the head and crowned with a diadem. 205 grams total, 13 cm high including stand
Acquired London art market in early 1960s. From the private collection of the late Walter Steinberg, London, UK. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.11633-199467.
The cult of Fortuna was associated with the round of the agricultural year, the wheel of time and the changing fortunes of the individual, both bad and good. The Rota Fortunae (wheel of fortune) is a symbol of the changeable nature of one's luck and was already a recognised idiom by the time of Cicero, writing in the 1st century B.C. -
Roman Horse Head Whorl Brooch
3rd-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £598
A bronze swastika-shaped fibula with horse-head decoration, each head with punched ring-and-dot eye, a similar motif to the centre. 16.7 grams, 45 mm
Acquired before 2000. From the collection of a European gentleman living in the UK.
In the 3rd century A.D., several examples of fibulae in the shape of four horses’ heads forming a swastika (type Almgren 232) seem to be related to the creation of the Illyrian cavalry corps in Roman army. Many examples of these military fibulae were found in ancient Roman Dacia (Romania), in Roman Illyricum and Moesia.
