By Carter B. Horsley

The December 10, 2009 Antiquities auction at Sotheby's is highlighted by a superb Egyptian statue of a kneeling priest, a magnificent Egyptian red jasper inlay of a king or god, many Roman Imperial period sculptures, and an Assyrian gypsum fragment.

Lot 32 is an extremely charming Roman Imperial sculpture of Pan with a Nymph, circa 1st Century A.D. It is 14 1/2 inches high. The lot has a modest estimate of $50,000 to $80,000. It sold for $86,500 including the buyer's premium as do all results mentioned in this article.

Of the 70 offered lots, 55 sold for a total of $5,329,875 with many lots exceeding their high estimates.

Lot 75 ia a lovely marble sarcophagus from the Roman Imperial period, circa 1st quartre of the 3rd Century A.D., and later. It measures 17 3/4 by 70 by 20 3/4 inches. It was once in the collection of William Waldorf Astor. It has a conservative estimate of $25,000 to $35,000. It sold for $62,500.

Lot 42 is a very good Roman Imperial Severan marble sacrophagus relief, circa A.D. 200-225. It measures 25 by 81 1/4 inches and was once in the collection of Cardinal Scipio Borghese, probably the acress Cecile Sorel, and Paul Reynaud. It has been widely published. The catalogue notes that there are five other columnar sarcophagi with Dionysiac decoration from metropolitan Roman workshops with five arcades resting on spiral columns. Cardinal Borhese (1576-1633) was a famous collector of antiquities. Ms. Sorel (1873-1966) was a popular French actress who supposedly use the relief as the front to her bathtub. M. Reynaud was the Prime Minister of the Third Republic between March and June 1940.

The lot has an estimate of $150,000 to $250,000. It sold for $1,538,500.

Lot 45 is a very good Roman Imperial marble relief panel of Dionysos and Ariadne, circa A.D. 150-175 or later. It is 11 1/4 by 15 3/4 inches and has an estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $50,000.

Lot 21 is a Roman Imperial marble statue of a torso of a satyr having a thorn removed from his foot. It is dated circa 2nd Century A.D., and is 21 inches high. It has an estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $86,500.

Lot 23 is a marble group of Atalanta and Hippomenes that was created in the early 17th Century with torsos from the Roman Imperial period, circa 1st Century A.D. The group is 44 1./2 inches high and formerly belonged to Cardinal Antonio Barberini (1607-1671). It has an estimate of $70,000 to $100,000. It sold for $128,500.

Lot 34 is a very impressive Roman Imperial bronze figure of Aphrodite that is dated 1st/2nd Century A.D. It is 20 1/8 inches high and was once in the collection of Henry Osborne Havemeyer and Louisine W. Havemeyer of New York. It has an estimate of $150,000 to $250,000. It sold for $530,500.

Lot 33 is a bronze Aphrodite, Eastern Roman Empire, circa 2nd Century A.D., 10 1/2 inches high. It has an estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $17,500.

Lot 22 is a very nice Roman Imperial torso of a dancing satyr that is dated 1st/2nd Century A.D. It is 13 3/4 inches high. It has an estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $37,500.

Lot 20 is one of seven known Roman versions of the head of Lysippos's sandal-binding Hermes. It has an estimate of $60,000 to $90,000 and is the cover illustration of the auction's catalogue. It is 14 3/8 inches high. It has an estimate of $60,000 to $90,000. It sold for $182,500.

Lot 18 is a nice Roman Imperial marble relief head of a dioskouros, circa A.D. 230-260. It is 9 1/4 inches high. It has an estimate of $12,000 to $18,000. It sold for $15,000.

Lot 9 is a very handsome marble relief head of a youth from the Roman Imperial period, 2nd/3rd Century A.D. It is 9 inches high and has an estimate of $10,000 to $15,000. It sold for $11,500.

Lot 17 is an impressive Roman Imperial head of Eros, circa 1st Century A.D. It is 7 inches high and has an estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $22,500.

Lot 43 is a good Roman Imperial marble relief panel of the Young Dionysus, circa 1st/2nd Century A.D. It measures 25 3/4 by 15 1/8 inches. It has an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000. It sold for $40,625.

Lot 91 is a very fine Hellenistic terracotta horse, Magna Graecia, circa 3rd Century B.C. It is 9 inches long and was consigned by the estate of Richard Auletta, a prominent public relations executive in New York. It has a modest estimate of $5,000 to $8,000. It sold for $18,750.

Lot 37 is a wonderful winged sea serpent bronze attachment from the Roman Imperial or Parthian period, circa 2nd Century A.D. It is 13 3/4 inches long. It was sold at Christie's June 12, 2002 when it failed to sell with an estimate of $60,000 to $80,000 and at Christie's in London October 26, 2006. It has an estimate of $35,000 to $45,000. It failed to sell.

For many novice collectors, the golden fleece is Assyrian palace reliefs from about seven centuries B.C., like the marvelous room at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. These are on a par with the Elgin Marbles at least in terms of impressiveness and in most instances are far better preserved. Lot 16, then, should stir some interest for it is a Assyrian gypsum relief fragment, Nineveh, probably from the South-west Palace of Sennacherib, reign of Sennacherib, 704-681 BC. The 14 by 18-inch fragment has one full, and marvelously bearded, face and a portion of another. It sold for $98,500 when it was auctioned with an estimate of $80,000 to $120,000 Sotheby's June 14, 2000.

Its estimate is $125,000 to $175,000. It failed to sell.

The finest work in the auction is Lot 8, a fabulous Egyptian copper alloy statue of a kneeling priest from the 26th Dynasty, 664-525 B.C. It is 5 1/2 inches high and was once with the Merrin Gallery in New York. The pose in which the priest is looking at the inside of his hands is unusual. The lot has a modest estimte of $80,000 to $120,000. It sold for $164,500.

Lot 12 is an exquisite red jasper Egyptian inlay of a king or god. It is dated 19th/22nd Dynasty, 1290-850 B.C. It is 1 1/2 inches high and has an estimate of $80,000 to $120,000. It sold for $158,500.