A ROMAN CHALCEDONY HEAD OF A BEARDED MAN
A ROMAN CHALCEDONY HEAD OF A BEARDED MAN
A ROMAN CHALCEDONY HEAD OF A BEARDED MAN
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PROPERTY FROM A DISTINGUISHED AMERICAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
A ROMAN CHALCEDONY HEAD OF A BEARDED MAN

CIRCA 1ST-2ND CENTURY A.D.

Details
A ROMAN CHALCEDONY HEAD OF A BEARDED MAN
CIRCA 1ST-2ND CENTURY A.D.
7⁄8 in. (2.2 cm.) high
Provenance
Fahim Joseph Kouchakji (1886-1976), New York; thence by descent.
Property from the Collection of the Late Fahim Kouchakji; Antiquities, Sotheby Parke Bernet, New York, 21 May 1977, lot 184.
Auktion XXVII, Frank Sternberg AG, Zurich, 7-8 November 1994, lot 811.
Art Market, Geneva.
Antiquities, Christie's, New York, 30 May 1997, lot 164.
with Robin Symes (1939-2023), London, acquired from the above.
Private Collection, U.K.
Art Market, London.
with Ariadne Galleries, New York and London, acquired from the above.
Acquired by the current owner from the above, 2016.
Literature
D.M. Bailey, "A Chalcedony Barbarian," in M. Henig and D. Plantzos, eds., Classicism to Neo-Classicism: Essays Dedicated to Gertrud Seidmann, Oxford, 1999, p. 80.
E. Gagetti, Preziose sculture di età ellenistica e romana, Milan, 2006, pp. 402-403, no. H5, pl. LXIII.
D. Del Bufalo, Precious Portraits: Small Precious Stone Sculptures of Imperial Rome, Turin, 2020, p. 156, no. 510.
Sale room notice
Please note updated provenance for this lot.

Brought to you by

Hannah Fox Solomon
Hannah Fox Solomon Head of Department, Specialist

Lot Essay

This head of a bearded man is a powerful expression of small-scale lapidary art. The subject is depicted with a furrowed brow, a full beard and moustache and is shown wearing a mantle pulled up over the top of his head with curling locks of hair escaping in front and arranged across his forehead. While Bailey (op. cit.) thought this head depicts a barbarian, it does not conform to any known types.

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