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LOT 0758
Roman Redware Bowl Fragment with Hippocampus and Standing Nereid
1ST-2ND CENTURY A.D.
4 3/4 in. (77 grams, 12 cm).
From the upper part of a vessel with two hippocampi (one partial) and a standing figure of a Nereid, floral and foliage decoration to the field, ornamental upper border; repaired. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired 1960s-1990s.
From the late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister
Cf. Beutler, F. et al., Der Adler Roms. Carnuntum und die Armee der Cäsaren, Bad-Deutsch-Altenburg, 2017, item 697, for similar fragment.
FootnotesThe complete vessel probably represented scenes linked with the cult of Poseidon and Amphitrite. The riches of the sea and the dangers of navigation were merged by the ancients into a myth of great fame known as the wedding procession between Poseidon - brother of Zeus and Hades, god of the sea and the Nereid Amphitrite. The Nereids were the divinities of the sea, grandchildren of the ocean. Like the nymphs, all the Nereids were beautiful young women who spent their time singing or weaving. Also involved in the procession were the tritons and hippocampi, who provocatively played shells or were ridden by Nereids.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0758
Roman Redware Bowl Fragment with Hippocampus and Standing Nereid
Sold for (Inc. bp): £104
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Roman Silver Cochlear Spoon Inscribed 'May You Live in God'
Circa 4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £715
Composed of a decoratively twisted slender stem with onion knop finial and roughly D-shaped neck formed as the arched neck of a horse, the restored oval bowl bearing a Latin inscription '[V]IVASINDEO' to the interior, the underside gently carinated. 13.5 grams, 13.4 cm
Ex Garcia collection, France, 1990s-2000s.
According to the British Museum, the inscription corresponds to the phrase 'Vivas in deo', meaning 'May you live in God'. This inscription was common in the Roman Empire and especially in Roman Britain after the advent of Christianity. A small Roman silver disc, thought to have been part of a signet ring, dated to 4th-5th century and found near Swaffham, is inscribed 'Antonius, may you live in God (Antoni, vivas in Deo)'. It is highly possible that our spoon, if a liturgical object, was used to administer Holy Communion. -
Marble Head of a Boy
Roman, 1st-4th century A.D. or laterSold for (Inc. bp): £312
Modelled facing in the round with naturalistic features. 6.2 kg, 21 cm high
Acquired 1960s-1990s. Late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister. -
Roman Lapis Lazuli and Coral Bead Group
Circa 1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £195
Large-holed cylindrical and oblate glass, lapis lazuli, and a few barrel-shaped coral examples. 27.9 grams total, 5-12 mm
London private collection, 1979-1983.
