Roman

Lot 91. A Greco-Persian violet chalcedony scaraboid with a lion-griffin, Classical court style, circa 5th century B.C.; 15⁄16 in. (2.4 cm.) wide. Lot sold: GBP 100,800 (Estimate: GBP 20,000 – GBP 30,000). © Christie's 2022 Provenance: Giorgio Sangiorgi (1886-1965), Rome, acquired and brought to Switzerland, late 1930s; thence by continuous descent to the current owner. Literature: A.U. Pope, A Survey of Persian Art, Vol. I, London, 1938, p. 392, fig. 90b.J. Boardman, Greek Gems and... [Lire la suite]

Courtesy Hindman. CHICAGO, IL.- Step into a cabinet of curiosities this November 10th with Hindman’s Ancient Art & Natural History: A Cabinet of Curiosities auction. Highlighting the auction is a rare and completely preserved iridescent ammonite fossil from 75 million years ago. Fast forwarding in history to another monumental moment, the auction concludes with the manual used by NASA to put a man on the moon in 1966. Presented alongside these items are works from ancient civilizations that reveal a better... [Lire la suite]

Memento mori, Roman, 199 BCE-500 CE, Science Museum Group Collection © The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum. Bronze miniature skeleton or "Larva Convivalis", a "memento mori" handed to guests at feasts, articulated but with lower right leg missing and left arm substituted for lower right leg.Memento mori translates from Latin as “Remember you must die”. This is a special type of memento mori called a larva convivialis, given to revellers at a banquet or feast. Even when the Romans were enjoying themselves, they still were... [Lire la suite]

Head of a Cycladic idol of the Spedos type, Early Cycladic II, circa 2700-2300 BC. Fine grained marble. H 10.5 cm. Courtesy Galerie Günter Puhze GMBH. Accompanied by Art Loss Register certificate S00213657, and IADDA certificate, this item has been checked against the Interpol database. Provenance: German private collection H. W., acquired 1985 on the German art market. Published: Galerie Günter Puhze, catalogue Kunst der Antike 6, Freiburg im Breisgau, 1985, n° 18. Head of a goddess, Roman, 1st century AD. Marble. H 33.5... [Lire la suite]

Lot 8. A Roman amber glass 'Victory' beaker, Circa early-mid 1st Century A.D.; 6.5cm high. Estimate £20,000 - £30,000. Sold for £ 25,250 (€ 29,517). © Bonhams 2001-2021 Blown in a two-part mould, of cylindrical form with a narrow everted rim, with three registers of decoration divided by horizontal ribs, the upper and lower with six stylised victory wreaths, a pair of opposing palm branches concealing the vertical mould seams, the central register with Greek inscription: ɅABE THИ NEIKHN ('Seize the... [Lire la suite]

Lot 87. An Roman gold and glass necklace, circa 2nd-3rd century A.D.; 15 in. (38.1 cm.) long. Estimate USD 6,000 - USD 8,000. © Christie's Image Ltd 2020. Provenance: with The Merrin Gallery, New York.Acquired by the current owner from the above, 1990. Note: The necklace is composed of embossed foliate elements joined together with wire loops on the reverse. It is centered by a rectangular box-shaped element set with green glass. The terminals are modeled in the form of dolphins above a... [Lire la suite]

Portrait head of a priest, Egyptian, Late Period, 30th Dynasty. Hard black stone. H 7.8 cm. © Galerie Günter Puhze GMBH. Provenance: private collection of Dr. H. B., Germany, acquired in 1998 from Galerie Günter Puhze, private collection, The Netherlands; private collection, England. Statuette of Venus, Roman, 2nd century AD. Bronze. H 20 cm. © Galerie Günter Puhze GMBH. Provenance: collection of Louis de Clercq (1836-1901), France. Literature: A. de Ridder, Catalogue Collection de Clercq, Tome III, Les Bronzes, Paris, 1904,... [Lire la suite]

Horse fulcrum, Hellenistic, 2nd-1st century BC. Bronze with silver inlay. H 17 cm. © DAVID AARON Provenance: reputedly part of a private European collection, 1970s; private collection, New York; art market, New York; private collection Alabastron, Achaemenid Empire, Western Asia, 5th century BC. Silver. H 26.1 cm. © DAVID AARON Provenance: private collection; Europe; private collection, acquired from the above circa 1995; sold at: Antiquities, Christie’s 11t December 2003, London, Lot 119; art market, London; acquired... [Lire la suite]

Lot 492. A Roman aquamarine ring stone with a portrait of Faustina Minor, circa 2nd century A.D.; 5/8 in. (1.5 cm.) long. Estimate GBP 30,000 - GBP 50,000. Price realised GBP 156,250. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019. Provenance: Set in a gold ring dating to circa 1800.English private collection, Surrey. Note: Portrait intaglios in aquamarine (blue beryl) are exceedingly rare, perhaps a result of the material’s hardness and also because large stones were uncommon in antiquity. Like other... [Lire la suite]

Xochipala, Guerrero, Mexico, Standing woman, 400 B.C.–500 A.D. Ceramic with red pigment. Princeton University Art Museum. Bequest of Gillett G. Griffin. John Bigelow Taylor Photography. PRINCETON, N.J. – Gillett G. Griffin (1928-2016) was not only a respected curator, scholar and collector but also a beloved teacher at Princeton University, where he taught and curated for 52 years. Legacy: Selections from the Gillett G. Griffin Collection celebrates Griffin’s eclectic tastes through a selection of artworks and artifacts... [Lire la suite]