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LOT 0889
Roman Silver Ring with Minerva
CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D.
7/8 in. (3.71 grams, 22.95 mm overall, 19.56 mm internal diameter (approximate size British P 1/2, USA 7 3/4, Europe 16.86, Japan 16)).
Ellipsoid bezel with incuse image of Minerva standing helmetted holding spear and shield; supplied with a museum-quality impression.
ProvenanceAcquired on the London art market in the late 1980s-1990s.
From the family collection of an East London, UK, gentleman.
Cf. Chadour, A.B., Rings. The Alice and Louis Koch Collection, volume I, Leeds, 1994, item 246.
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 Silver Bracelet Pair
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £260
Group of two penannular bracelets, each with a round-section shank, cross-hatched finials. 27.6 grams total, 60-62 mm
Private collection, Arundel, West Sussex, UK, 1975-late 1990s. -
Roman Bronze Military Belt Fitting
3rd-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £124
Appliqué in the form of a pugio dagger with waisted blade and lateral knops to the pommel; attachment loops to the reverse. 12.1 grams, 40 mm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent. -
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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.
