Loading, please wait...
LOT 0058
Scythian Mirror with Crouching Stag
5TH-4TH CENTURY B.C.
12 3/8 in. (570 grams, 31.5 cm).
Discoid body with raised rim; ribbed column-like handle with a kneeling stag above, supporting the mirror with its large antlers.
ProvenanceMr M.B., Mainz, Germany, since the 1960s.
Acquired from the above, 2007.
Private collection, London.
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 no.12182-221464.
Cf. Loehr, M., ‘The Stag Image in Schythia and the Far East’ in Archives of the Chinese Art Society of America, Vol. 9 (1955), pp. 63-76; Trofimova, A., Greeks on the Black Sea: Ancient Art from the Hermitage, J. Paul Getty Museum, 2007, item 29j; see also Leypunskaya, N. A., Olbian-Scythian Trade: Exchange Issues in the Sixth to Fourth Centuries BC, Oxford, 2007.
FootnotesBronze mirrors of this type with zoomorphic handles, were widespread in the Scythian archaeology of the Northern Black Sea Region, Northern Caucasus and Carpathian Basin. Handles were often decorated with sculptured depictions of rams, feline predators or deer (stag). The similarity with Scythian art is clearly visible by comparing the stag of our mirror with the stags from the Scythian steppe culture (Loehr, 1955, figs.5,6,10,13-21).
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.
LOT 0058
Scythian Mirror with Crouching Stag
Estimate £2,000 - 3,000€2,320 - 3,480 (for guidance only)$2,700 - 4,050 (for guidance only)
-
Hellenistic Gold Dolphin Amphora Pendant
2nd-1st century B.C.Estimate: £500 - 700 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £250
Formed as an amphora with dolphin handles, oblate carnelian bead below with granulated collar; loop and suspension ring above. 2,2 grams, 32 mm
Ex property of a late Japanese collector, 1970s-2000s. -
Etruscan Bronze Statuette of Herakles
4th-3rd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £18,200
Modelled in the round with a muscular nude body, his club resting on his shoulder and the hair dressed in rows of tight, close-set curls underneath the Nemean lionskin hood with cloak billowing over his left arm, the paws tied across his chest; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 290 grams total, 14.5 cm high (19.5 cm high including stand)
Fine condition, excellent uniform patina.
with Sotheby's, New York, 21 November 1985, no.60. Ex private New York collection. 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.11794-206497.
The statuette assumes the position of the 'attacking Hercules', which characterises numerous Etruscan statues of the hero of the classical era, however, with a less aggressive stance. The type was probably an Etruscan creation of the 5th century B.C., based on Greek models, which lasted until the end of the Hellenistic period, when Etruria was by then incorporated into the Roman world. This statuette, despite certain anatomical stylisation and an impersonal characterisation of the face, is the result of a good artistic and technical quality. The comparison of the artwork with the group identified as ‘Trieste’ from Colonna shows that this specimen is more recent and should be dated to the end of the Hellenistic Age. These small statuettes were probably offered ex-voto by the Romano-Etruscan aristocracy of the period. -
South Italian Gnathian Ware Pottery Oinochoe
Circa 4th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £910
Piriform bodied with U-shaped spout and high handle, polychrome painted egg, zigzag, bar, dot and laurel pattern with a flower arranged in rows to the front face. 193 grams, 20.2 cm high
Acquired in Europe before 2001. European collection.
