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LOT 0671
Romano-British Enamelled Bronze Horse and Rider Brooch
2ND CENTURY A.D.
1 in. (3.9 grams, 27 mm).
Plate brooch with cells to the horse's chest and flanks and to the rider's body, intended to accept cloisonné enamel fill, remains of a sprung pin to the reverse. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceEx DRG Coins and Antiquities, Bishops Stortford, Essex, UK.
From the private collection of a West London, UK, gentleman, formed since the early 2000s.
Accompanied by a handwritten dealer's ticket.
Cf. Hattatt, R., Brooches of Antiquity, Oxford, 1987, items 1177, 1179.
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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Late Roman Lead Tessera with Menorah and Inscription
Circa 4th-6th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £455
Rectangular panel with a menorah flanked by an inscription. 26.28 grams, 30 mm
From a UK collection since before 1990. -
Late Roman Hinged Lidded Pyxis
4th-5th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £468
Sheet-bronze two-part pyxis with carinated sidewall to the base, lid with reserved octofoil on a pounced field, concentric pointillé rings; working hinge mechanism. 64 grams, 86 mm
Acquired in the 1990s. Ex Abelita family collection. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Although pyxides were originally made of wood, as their name suggests, the term soon came to refer, in the Graeco-Roman world, to round containers used for both medicinal and domestic purposes. From the time of the Achaeans to the end of the Roman Empire, we find pyxides made of horn, ivory, bronze, silver, and gold. Women used them to store their ointments, makeup, and toiletries. A pyxis used for medical purposes was called a loculus, while the name pyxidicula designated a container for eye drops, and a tripuxium was a pyxis containing extracts from three different containers. -
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Roman Marble Figure of a Phrygian Deity on Horseback
Circa 2nd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £14,040
The rider, Mithras-Sabatios, wearing a distinctive knee-length belted tunic and Persian trousers, with a riding cloak secured at each shoulder and the end folded over as a cowl; the left hand gathering the reins and the right extending a patera in offering; the horse surmounting a capital, with its remains preserved beneath the belly; mounted on a custom-made stand. 4.3 kg, 25.5 cm
Private collection, Bavaria, since the 1980s. Anonymous Sale; Gorny & Mosch, 29 June 2011, no.234. Acquired by the present owner at the above sale. Accompanied by a copy of the relevant Gorny & Mosch catalogue pages. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12965-245245.
The composition closely recalls a small bronze of Mithras on horseback in the J. Paul Getty Museum (Getty Villa), acc. no. 71.AB.160. The rider's Eastern (Persian) costume suggests his identification with Mithras, the focus of a mystery religion which spread among the Roman legions from the 1st century BC onwards. The horse appears to be passing over a column, indicating that the piece likely formed part of a larger furniture mount or architectural fitting. If so, this would be an exceptionally rare representation, as equestrian images of Mithras are markedly less common than the familiar tauroctony.
