CIRCA 6TH-5TH CENTURY B.C.

Details

AN ETRUSCAN BRONZE FIRE-RAKE
CIRCA 6TH-5TH CENTURY B.C.
11 1/4 in. (28.5 cm.) long

Provenance

Swiss private collection, acquired prior to 1985.

Literature

S. Haynes, Etruscan Bronzes, London, 1985, pp. 185 and 284, no. 106.

Special notice

This lot is offered without reserve. This lot has been imported from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice.

Conditions of sale

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Lot Essay

The acutely bent hand emerges from a stylized reptile head and with veins in relief and fingernails delineated. Haynes notes that hand-shaped fire-rakes have been found alongside charcoal braziers in Etruscan tombs and "the reptile's head is a feature which occurs on several examples from Vulci and may be a local specialty".

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