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LOT 0110
Roman Silver-Gilt Military Belt Plate with Hercules Killing the Nemean Lion
4TH CENTURY A.D.
2 1/8 in. (18.5 grams, 53 mm).
A silver-gilt strap tongue from military belt, rectangular shape with soldered bead on the back, a repoussé work representing Hercules, naked and covered only by a mantle, killing the Nemean lion, a palm of victory under the feet of the hero, a dog attacking the lion from above, foliage around the scene.
ProvenanceAcquired 1980-2015.
Ex Abelita family collection.
See Sommer, M., Die Gürtel und Gürtelbeschläge des 4. und 5. Jahrhunderts im römischen Reich, Bonner Hefte zur Vorgeschichte, 22, Bonn, 1980 (1984), pl.54, 11.
FootnotesThe belt fitting finds parallels with parts of belt from Asia Minor, today at the British Museum, inv. EC 252-254. These kind of plates, decorative and engraved with classical scenes, can be dated possibly to the age of Theodosius I. The quality of decoration can support the thesis of their belonging to officers of the Comitatus (the Imperial mobile army).
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0110
Roman Silver-Gilt Military Belt Plate with Hercules Killing the Nemean Lion
Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,040
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Roman Glass Bead Collection
1st century B.C.-1st century A.D. and laterSold for (Inc. bp): £234
A group of eight individually decorated coloured glass beads with swirled, folded, trail-decorated and combed decoration. 25 grams total, 12-22 mm
Acquired 1980s-1990s. H.N.collection, Milton Keynes, Bedfordshire, UK. -
Roman Key Ring Group
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £20
A trio of bronze key rings with rectangular bits, including an openwork example. 13.9 grams total, 19-23 mm
Acquired in the 1970s. Important European collection. -
Roman Lead Sealing with Bust of an Emperor
3rd-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £20
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'. 2.3 grams, 13 mm
Acquired in the 1970s. Important European collection.
Lead 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.
