A FRAGMENTARY ROMAN MARBLE PILASTER CAPITAL
PROPERTY FROM THE JOUKOWSKY COLLECTION
A FRAGMENTARY ROMAN MARBLE PILASTER CAPITAL

CIRCA 50-20 B.C.

Details
A FRAGMENTARY ROMAN MARBLE PILASTER CAPITAL
CIRCA 50-20 B.C.
15 1⁄8 in. (38.4 cm.) long
Provenance
Said to be deaccessioned from the collection of a Dutch museum, acquired late 19th-early 20th century.
Nastad Collection, Amsterdam.
with Hermann Plenge, Amsterdam.
with Ward & Company, New York.
Artemis A.W. Joukowsky (1930-2020) and Dr. Martha Sharp Joukowsky (1936-2022), Providence, RI, acquired from the above, 1996; thence by descent to the current owners.

Brought to you by

Hannah Fox Solomon
Hannah Fox Solomon Head of Department, Specialist

Lot Essay

This attractive pilaster capital fragment belongs to a formative period of Roman architectural decoration. Belonging to the so-called Second Triumvirate Style, the phase is characterized by pilasters and capitals sculpted in a Corinthianizing manner and ornamented with four-petalled roses on long stems and multi-tooth acanthus leaves, as observed here. The present example is especially notable for the rose flower, which curves outward on a long stem to the upper corner and forms a volute. The fluent modeling of the pilaster may indicate a late date in the series, perhaps coinciding early within the reign of Emperor Augustus, circa 30-20 B.C. For a related example, see pl. XV, fig. 7 in D.E. Strong, “Some Early Examples of the Composite Capital,” The Journal of Roman Studies, vol. 50.

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