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LOT 0684
Roman to Tudor Bronze Artefact Group
2ND-16TH CENTURY A.D.
1 - 1 5/8 in. (38.7 grams total, 23-42 mm).
Comprising: a heart-shaped mount with a central lion-head; a rectangular mount with decorative border in low-relief; a horse head modelled in the round; an oval silver pendant with S and stars; hooked tag with ring-and-dot motifs. [5, No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired on the UK art market in the 1970s-1990s.
Property of a Nottinghamshire, UK, gentleman.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
For a similar hooked tag of the early Medieval period see PAS NLM-0E59DC and NLM-0E0E3D.
FootnotesThe use of hooked tags for fastening first became fashionable during the Anglo-Saxon period. They are usually triangular or circular in shape, of sheet metal (normally bronze or occasionally in silver) and have two or three attachment holes at the widest end.
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 Bronze Ring with Amethyst Gemstone
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £260
Comprising a D-section hoop with raised shoulders, rectangular bezel set with an amethyst intaglio engraved with an advancing bird. 3.33 grams, 20.86 mm overall, 14.24 mm internal diameter (approximate size British G, USA 3 1/4, Europe 4.92, Japan 4)
Acquired on the UK art market before 2000. Property of an Essex, UK, gentleman. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Birds were often involved in the religious life of Greeks and Romans. For example, the foundation ceremony of a city had fixed rules, involving the augurs’ interpretation of allegedly divine omens, such as the flight patterns of birds. Birds were often used for children’s rings: from the villa or palace of Fishbourne, Sussex, came a gold child’s ring containing a diminutive chrome chalcedony engraved with a bird. -
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Roman Silver Statuette of Cybele
1st-2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £585
Modelled in the round wearing a floor-length palla draped over her head and over her robe, with staff (broken) in her left hand and patera in her right; thick dorsal loop. 14.01 grams, 34 mm
Acquired in the late 1980s-early 1990s. Private collection, London, UK. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Roman Gilt Bronze Medallion with Mythological Scene
3rd-5th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £91
Discoid in plan with repoussé sheet-bronze cover on a bronze disc; facing image of two goddesses holding cornucopiae (Fortuna and Isis) flanking an altar, on a baseline. 7.5 grams, 23 mm
Acquired in 1993. Private collection, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
There are reliefs and paintings from across the Empire showing religious processions involving cult statues of the two goddesses. The famous Roman novel 'The Golden Ass' by Lucius Apuleius provides literary evidence of such processions in honour of the goddess Isis. The statue of the goddess was taken from the temple and processed through the streets with great pomp and ceremony on an elaborate bier or cart by the priests and devotees to the accompaniment of music and prayers.
