Loading, please wait...
LOT 0129
Romano-British Bronze Bound Bearded Captive Mount
1ST-2ND CENTURY A.D.
2 in. (28 grams, 51 mm).
Depicted as a bearded man from the Eastern Empire, seated and naked apart from a pointed cap on his head, with rope binding the hands together and extending around the neck, feet also bound; hole through the back and side for attachment.
ProvenanceFound Southern England.
Acquired on the UK art market in the 1980s.
From an East Anglian private collection.
Cf. Beutler, F. et al., Der Adler Roms. Carnuntum und der Armee der Cäsaren, Bad-Deutsch Altenberg, 2017, item 1007.
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:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
-
.jpg)
Roman Early Christian Globus Cruciger Carnelian Gemstone
Circa 4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
With a saint and globus cruciger; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 0.60 grams, 12 mm
From the collection of a Swiss gentleman formed in Europe from 1970-1980s; thence by descent from the family in London. -
Roman Bronze Hermes Figure
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £169
Modelled standing, holding a caduceus and a coin bag, wearing a winged petasos. 38.5 grams, 61 mm
Acquired early 1990s. Ex private American collection; thence by descent. Private collection since 1998. -
Roman Bronze Stamp for Octavian
Circa 1st century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £650
Formed as a tablet-shaped stamp (signaculum), with raised border above and below containing an inscription in Latin in reverse over two lines, reading: 'Q[UINTI] POM [PONII] CRE [SCONII} ? / OCTAVIAN[I]' possibly translating to: 'Of Quintus Pomponius Cresconius Octavianus', this latter being the owner; with a large loop to verso. 92 grams, 64 mm
From an old private collection formed before 1985. Accompanied by a copy of a previous dealer's certificate of authenticity including provenance.
Used to stamp documents and a broad range of different materials and food, signacula came into use in the Roman res publica during the 2nd century B.C., becoming both popular and widely used in many areas of everyday life during the Imperial period. These signacula were not exclusively used in the sphere of economy and property administration, but also in public and private sphere, determining the identity of their owners. The bronze stamp - also definable as a tessera, like the wooden one - was an instrumentum vicarium (auxiliary tool) of the annulus signatorius (seal ring), but compared to the annulus, it was much stronger and more practical, capable of leaving a better recognisable imprint. By analogy, the press note of a wooden or terracotta stamp also had an important certifying function, but the object that produced it only lasted a limited time, while the signaculum ex aere (bronze stamp) lasted a lifetime.
