CIRCA 3RD-4TH CENTURY A.D.

Details

A ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL
CIRCA 3RD-4TH CENTURY A.D.
51 1/2 in. x 26 in. (131 cm. x 66 cm.)

Provenance

French private collection, acquired prior to 1977.

Literature

Maison & Jardin, May 1977, issue no. 233.

Special notice

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. Following the auction, this lot will be stored at Crozier Park Royal and will be available for collection from 12.00pm on the second business day after the sale. Please call Christie’s Client Service 24 hours in advance to book a collection time at Crozier Park Royal. All collections from Crozier Park Royal will be by pre-booked appointment only. Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 9060 I Email: cscollectionsuk@christies.com.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Claudio Corsi Specialist, Head of Department

ccorsi@christies.com +44 (0) 20 7389 2607

Lot Essay

The bright yellow, red, green, black and white tesserae are arranged to form rows of perspective cubes within looped patterns, framed by chequered bands and more perspective cubes. Optical illusions were often used by mosaic artists to draw the eye of the spectator and entertain. The motif of perspective cubes can be found across the Roman Empire, often also through the medium of 'opus sectile; for another example of perspective cubes arranged in a dazzling radiating pattern, see a panel in the Sousse Museum in M. Yacoub, The Splendours of Tunisian Mosaics, 2007, p. 146, fig. 67.

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