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LOT 0667
Romano-Egyptian Terracotta Figure of a Slave with Fruit Basket
1ST CENTURY A.D.
6 7/8 in. (286 grams, 17.5 cm).
Hollow-formed figure of a servant with grotesque facial features, pointed cap and a short tunic, carrying a pouch in the right hand and shoulders an overflowing fruit basket on the left; a large recess between his legs may be for the insertion of an oversized model phallus; pierced lug to rear of neck for suspension.
ProvenanceAcquired from Galerie Puhze, Freiburg, between 2002 and 2010.
From the collection of R. L., Lower Saxony.
Ex Gorny & Mosch, auction 300, Munich, no.75.
Accompanied by a certificate from Galerie Günter Puhze and a German export licence.
Cf. Gods, Tombs & Grotesques - Clay Figures from Everyday Life in Roman Egypt, Exhibition Hamburg, 1991, no.104; Loeben C.E. - Wiese, A. B. Köstlichkeiten aus Kairo! Die ägyptische Sammlung des Konditorei- und Kaffeehaus-Besitzers Achille Groppi (1890-1949), Basel, Antikenmuseum und Sammlung Ludwig; Hannover, Museum August Kestner, 2008, p. 50, fig. 45, for similar.
FootnotesGrotesque and exaggerated figurines were produced in late Hellenistic times, especially in Alexandria. The artisans, fascinated with realism, started to reproduce scenes and figures from daily life, and seemed to have a preference for emphasis on ill and deformed persons. The characters with caricature features are usually referred to as grotesques.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0667
Romano-Egyptian Terracotta Figure of a Slave with Fruit Basket
Sold for (Inc. bp): £221
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Roman Gemstone Collection
1st-2nd century A.D.Estimate: £350 - 450 (+bp*)
Current Winning Bid: £189
Mixed group including a standing female, a perching bird and others; each supplied with a museum-quality impression. 2.66 grams total, 7-16 mm
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.
Two of the gemstones in this collection show cockerels. The motif of fighting or individual cockerels was very popular in the classical world, and individual cockerels (the animal often associated with gods, such as Mercury or Sol/Helios) were also often depicted in a standing position. Another gemstone appears to represent a nude figure of Dionysus/Bacchus draped in a long cloak, and another shows Helios with a radiate crown. -
Roman Carnelian Gemstone with Minerva
2nd-3rd century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £78
With intaglio Minerva standing holding spear and shield; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 1.22 grams, 14.41 mm
From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
Roman Terracotta Scorpion Amulet
1st-4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £39
Plano-convex in section with perforation, low-relief scorpion motif to obverse. 3.52 grams, 21 mm
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.
