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LOT 0043
'The Metropolitan Museum of Art' Cypriot Limestone Votive Head of a Man
CIRCA 5TH CENTURY B.C.
5 1/8 in. (367 grams total, 13.1 cm high including stand).
Finely carved votive head with almond-shaped eyes and strong nose, lips set to a gentle smile, typical of the Greek kouroi of this period, wearing a conical headdress leaving the ears exposed; set on its original base from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, with item number '163' and three sale labels on the base.
ProvenanceLikely discovered by Luigi Palma di Cesnola in Cyprus, 1860s-70s.
Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, likely acquired from the above in 1872.
Collection of Ira Martin, New York, acquired from the above on 12 March 1926.
with Christie’s, New York, Antiquities, 5 June 1998, no.133.
Private collection, thence by descent.
Exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, c.1872-1926.
LiteratureSee a figure in the British Museum, London, from the Sanctuary of Apollo, BM 1910,0620.9, for a similar votive.
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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LOT 0043
'The Metropolitan Museum of Art' Cypriot Limestone Votive Head of a Man
Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,860
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Greek Red Variegated Gemstone with Chalice and Birds
6th-4th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Scaraboid type with incuse design to the underside of a footed chalice with two birds perched on the rim of the bowl; supplied with a museum-quality impression. 1.45 grams, 14 mm
From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
Greek Bronze Bird Pendant
Geometric Period, 8th-7th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £111
Modelled in the round with a long beak and splayed, short legs, pierced through the upper body. 14.7 grams, 35 mm
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman. -
Mycenaean Painted Pottery Flask
14th-13th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,820
Comprising a circular body with a rounded base and two strap handles, a short neck with an everted rim; the body with a painted expanding cross motif with the arms separated by a band of pellets. 132 grams, 11.1 cm
Private collection, Switzerland, acquired in the 1994. Private family collection since the late 1990s. 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.13018-246795.
Mycenaean ceramics were influenced by Minoan shapes and decorative styles from the late Middle Helladic period. This close relationship – likely accompanied by the development of shared cultural practices and etiquette – creates the hypothesis that pilgrim flasks were introduced to Greece via Crete. Pilgrim flasks were produced in Mycenaean contexts from the Late Helladic IIA:1 period (1420-1390 B.C.).
