Anthony Hopkins/Coriolanus

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VA… Read more

Details

Anthony Hopkins/Coriolanus
A prop helmet, a copy of a 2nd Century A.D. Roman cavalry parade helmet, made of burnished and bronzed leather, the visor modelled as a face mask, the crown with curled leather appliqué forming a decorative peak at the forehead, the helmet with additional detachable rear peak -- made for Anthony Hopkins in the 1971 Old Vic production of William Shakespeare's Coriolanus, directed by Manfred Wekwert and Joachim Tenschert, design by Karl von Appen

Provenance

Ex-lot 112, Auction of National Theatre Costumes, The National Theatre, circa 1980.

Literature

FORTIN, Michel Syria - Land of Civilizations, Quebec: Musée de la Civilisation, 1999

Special notice

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 17.5% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Further details

c photograph courtesy of John Timbers

Lot Essay

It has been remarked that the features of the face mask/visor on this helmet resemble Anthony Hopkins in appearance. It is interesting to note that Michael Fortin writes ...The Roman historian Arrian relates that the auxiliary cavalry of the Roman army took part in tournaments in which the adversaries wore masked helmets....it's ..likely that the silversmith..[would have] modeled the mask's features to resemble those of the person who would wear it...

More from Film and Entertainment

View All