Lot Essay
For a related example, with protomes in the form of Zeus-Ammon, see no. 84, p. 279 in Di Stefano Manzella, Mestiere di Epigrafista, Guida alla Schedatura del Materiale Epigrafico Lapideo.
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JULIO-CLAUDIAN PERIOD, CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D.
Details
A ROMAN MARBLE CINERARY URN
JULIO-CLAUDIAN PERIOD, CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D.
With opposing heads of Bacchus projecting from below the rim, each depicted with center-parted wavy hair bound in a fillet of ivy and berries, two corkscrew curls framing his face, the unarticulated almond-shaped eyes with thick upper lids, his sharply-arching brows merging with the straight nose, with a small bow-shaped mouth and square chin, the surface elegantly sculpted in relief, vines of ivy and berries draped from the Bacchus heads and gathered by a ribbon on each side, one side centered by a rectangular tabula inscribed in Latin, [P]SERVILIO SECVNDO AVG, the upper surface ridged to accommodate the now-missing lid, a mortise on the underside for the now-missing base
17½ in. (44.4 cm.) wide; 11 in. (27.9 cm.) high
JULIO-CLAUDIAN PERIOD, CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D.
With opposing heads of Bacchus projecting from below the rim, each depicted with center-parted wavy hair bound in a fillet of ivy and berries, two corkscrew curls framing his face, the unarticulated almond-shaped eyes with thick upper lids, his sharply-arching brows merging with the straight nose, with a small bow-shaped mouth and square chin, the surface elegantly sculpted in relief, vines of ivy and berries draped from the Bacchus heads and gathered by a ribbon on each side, one side centered by a rectangular tabula inscribed in Latin, [P]SERVILIO SECVNDO AVG, the upper surface ridged to accommodate the now-missing lid, a mortise on the underside for the now-missing base
17½ in. (44.4 cm.) wide; 11 in. (27.9 cm.) high
Provenance
Swiss Private Collection, 1985.