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LOT 0769
Roman Terracotta Oil Lamp with Floral Motif
5TH CENTURY A.D.
4 1/2 in. (173 grams, 11.5 cm).
Grooved lug handle to rear, discus with two filling holes and a central rosette motif, foliate border to the shoulder; low basal ring and maker's mark 'E'.
ProvenanceAcquired on the European art market, 1980s.
English private collection.
Cf. Bussière, J., Lindros Wohl, B., Ancient Lamps in the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, 2017, no.526, for the type (late lamps from Asia Minor).
FootnotesMany lamps of this category (late lamps of Asia Minor types, sometimes just called 'late Ephesian lamps' but diffused in all of the Roman Levant) were discovered in the Seven Sleepers Cemetery at Ephesus. These lamp types have either a circular or an oval elongated body that is sharply carinated, with protruding nozzle. The shoulders are outward sloping and offer a variety of characteristic decorations in both relief and sunken patterns: rows of globules, slanted radiating grooves, ovolos, vine-tendrils and grapes, tongues or petals, and concentric rings.
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 Marble Female Head
Circa 3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £936
From a relief with hair centre-parted and drawn back from the face, gathered at the nape in a chignon; rounded face with soft features, drilled eyes and nostrils; mounted on a custom-made stand. 523 grams total, 78 mm high (12.7 cm high including stand)
London art market, 2000s. Property of a London gentleman. -
Roman Terracotta Oil Lamp with Lion
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
Loop handle to the rear, low discus with an advancing lion with its head turned to the right, hatched decoration on the shoulder; concentric circles to the base. 108 grams, 11.2 cm
Acquired on the European art market, 1980s. English private collection.
This lamp belongs to the group of Provincial African lamps with a plain shoulder and a heart-shaped nozzle. Usually they are classified as D IX, but Italic and African variants of D X are very similar and have the shoulders with closely spaced outward-slanted rays, separated from discus by two circular grooves, here hardly visible. -
Roman Glass Unguentarium
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
Bulbous body with flattened underside, tall tubular neck with rolled and folded rim. 43 grams, 11.5 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.
