Loading, please wait...
LOT 0170
Roman Openwork Silver Military Baldric Phalera
3RD CENTURY A.D.
3 3/8 in. (40 grams, 86 mm).
With concentric lines of openwork ornament in lanceolate shapes, ending with crescent decorations.
ProvenanceAcquired from Gallery Gryphos, Munich, 1997.
European private collection.
Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.11998-211928.
Cf. Bishop, M.C. & Coulston, J.N.C., Roman Military Equipment from the Punic Wars to the Fall of Rome, Oxford, 2006, pls.3b and 7a, for similar.
FootnotesIn the 3rd century A.D. Roman army, the old ring suspension system of the sword, of Celtic and Iberian origin, was abandoned. The sword was now mainly carried suspended from a broad baldric on the soldier’s left side. The high quality of the openwork decoration of our phalera and the precious silver of which it is made imply that it may have once belonged to a commissioned officer.
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 Black Glass Bead Necklace String
1st century A.D. and laterSold for (Inc. bp): £98
Graduated restrung group of irregular-shaped beads. 12.26 grams, 84 cm long
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. -
Roman Glass Vessel
1st-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £182
With slightly tapering body, trumpet-shaped mouth and gussetted folded rim. 51 grams, 98 mm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. -
.jpg)
Roman Terracotta Oil Lamp with Head of Medusa
2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £221
Mould-made with convex shoulder separated from the concave discus by a narrow band of triangles and ovules, single groove around the discus, lower filling-hole, burn marks on the nozzle, flat undefined base, discus decorated with the head of Medusa within a laurel. 50 grams, 86 mm
Fine condition.
German collection formed since 1970. Acquired on the UK art market. Property of an Essex gentleman.
A Loeschcke VIII variant. The form and decoration suggest a Hadrianic date, at which time Medusa was one of the most popular subjects depicted on lamps. In ancient mythology, Medusa was one of three monstrous winged female creatures who had venomous snakes living in her hair. The story of Medusa is elaborated by the Roman poet Ovid in his Metamorphosis, which explains that Medusa was a beautiful woman until she had sex with Poseidon in Athena’s temple. Athena exacted punishment on Medusa, turning her into a monstrous creature with a glare that turned all who gazed into her eyes to stone. Medusa was eventually beheaded by the Greek hero Perseus, who used her head as a weapon which, even after being hewn from Medusa's body, could turn his enemies to stone. Perseus later presented Medusa's head to the goddess Athena, which she in turn weaponised, placing it on her shield. In classical antiquity, representations of the head of Medusa appeared in the apotropaic device known as the Gorgoneion, designed to ward-off evil and bad luck.
