Roman Terracotta Oil Lamp of Head of Silenus

LATE 1ST CENTURY B.C.-EARLY 1ST CENTURY A.D.

4 3/4 in. (82 grams, 12.1 cm).

Mould-made with the upper half of the body in the form of a male head with well-defined features, long moustache and beard, possibly a representation of the god Silenus; ring handle at the rear.

Provenance

Previously Cambridge, UK, private collection, circa 2010.
Ex London, UK, gallery.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.

Literature

See Hayes, J.W., Ancient Lamps in the Royal Ontario Museum, item 99, for a similar example.

Footnotes

Plastic lamps with figurines first appear in the Hellenistic period, possibly originating in Athens. Found in all parts of the Mediterranean basin, they were particularly popular during the first and second centuries AD.

CONDITION

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LOT 0817