Roman Roof Tile and Pottery Sherd Group

Scaphoid in plan with raised rim to the obverse, cruciform arrangement of ring-and-dot motifs. 3.6 grams, 29 mm



Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

Fragments of wall plaster with rendered surface painted with mainly red, pale blue and white detailing; some with impression of timber laths to the reverse. 1.2 kg total, 8.5-13 cm



Acquired in the 19th century. Ex Jeger collection, Switzerland. UK gallery, early 2000s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

These small fragments, for analogies with the fragments of Pompeii, seem to belong to the second style of Roman painting, red panels representing highlight and shadow, decorated with vegetal interlaces. Some panels were probably framed by a red grenade fillet. A fragment shows alternate blue and red colour over a cream background, maybe pertinent to a socle.

Comprising a square-section socket with inner crossmember, long square-section horn to each side; some marine accretion to the surface. 14.4 kg, 61.5 cm



Acquired in the 1970s-early 1980s. From the collection of a Plymouth, UK, gentleman; thence by descent. Ex property of Philip Smith, UK. From a Cambridgeshire, UK, private collection. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

Roman ships often used a type of anchor with a wooden shank and a lead stock at the top. This lead stock provided weight to help the anchor lay flat on the seabed and dig in. This exact type of anchor was already out of use by the time of the Roman conquest of Britain.