By Carter B. Horsley This Antiquities auction at Christie's June 12, 2002 is very strong in Greek and Roman works with many unusual and very fine works highlighted by a magnificent Greek bronze of a centaur and a marvelous small Roman bronze pantheistic deity. Lot 81, shown at the top of this article, is a fabulous Greek bronze figure of a centaur that is 14 1/2 inches long and dates from the Hellenistic Period, circa 1st Century B.C. It has a very, very, conservative estimate of $100,000 to $150,000 as this would qualify as the centerpiece of any major museum collection of antiquities because of its great charm, interesting patina, and its wonderful expressiveness. It sold for $218,500 including the buyer's premium as do all results mentioned in this article. The top of a centaur is a man and the bottom is a horse. Centaurs appeared by the late Mycenaen Period and were generally depicted as lustful, fond of wine and often in battle. By the Hellenistic Period, they came to be associated with Dionysus and music. The catalogue provides the following commentary on this lot: "Our centaur, a late Hellenistic confection, seems based on earlier Hellenistic prototypes. The fine modeling, the torsion, the expressive face and unruly hair all find parallels in Pergamene art of the late 3rd and early 2nd century B.C. Indeed, three fragmentary centaurs and the rump of a horse, possibly also a centaur, were excavated in the Pergamene Asklepeion. They continued to be very popular with the Romans, as can be seen by the two pair from the Villa of Poppea at Oplontis.The equine portion of our centaur also finds parallels in the famous bronzes from Herculaneium, one depicting Alexander the Great on horseback, one depicting an Amazon, and the third probably missing its rider.All share the same rearing pose and the naturalistic modeling, in particular the observation of the folds of skin along the bent legs. And, like the Heraculaneum bronzes, our centaur must also have had an angled support joined to the underside just behind the forelegs, where there is a rectangular mortise."
A stunning companion piece to the centaur is Lot 154, a Roman bronze pantheistic deity, circa late 1st-early 2nd Century A.D. The 10 7/8-inch-high bronze depicts a young man with upraised wings holding Zeus' thunderbolt and a now-missing attribute in his left hand with Apollo's quiver on his right shoulder and wearing a high-crested helmet surmounted by an Egyptianizing solar crown with plumes flanked on either side by a tall plume and two rays. This sensational piece was at one time in the Cook Collection in England and has a very conservative estimate of $30,000 to $50,000. It sold for $71,700. A 1941 letter by Dr. Lodovico Pollak stated that the figure was found in the lagoon of Venice and the catalogue notes that the "presence of marine incrustations supports this claim," adding that there is a related pantheistic deity in the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.
Many of the most impressive statues of Classical antiquity are superb studies of drapery. Lot 161 is an excellent Roman draped female figure, marble that is circa 1st Century A.D. The very fine headless and armless marble statue is 45 inches tall and has an estimate of $60,000 to $80,000. It failed to sell. Lot 50 is a smaller, limestone, Greek sculpture of a draped female, Tarantine, Classical Period, circa 4th Century B.C. The 9 1/2-inch high sculpture is headless, armless and without shoulders but has a great dynamism that recalls the exoticism of some Indian art. Her right hip is thrust outwards and the lot has a very modest estimate of $5,000 to $7,000. It sold for $4,780. The catalogue notes that this work may have been part of a frieze. For those who prefer their females undraped, the auction has a couple of very good examples. Lot 151 is a Roman marble figure of Venus, circa 1st-2nd Century A.D. The 47 1/2-inch-high, headless and armless statue has her mantle pulled tight and knotted around her hips, "exposing her torso, revealing the form of her legs beneath." The catalogue notes that "this is a fine Roman version of a Hellenistic creation today mistakenly called 'Aphrodite Anadyomene,' known from numerous Roman copies.The goddess is not 'rising from the sea' as the epithet implies, but rather, she is arranging her hair. Both hands are needed, which is why her mantle is knotted in place." The statue comes from the estate of the Honorable Robert McKinney and has a modest estimate of $80,000 to $120,000. It sold for $77,675. An even lovelier albeit smaller Roman statue of Venus is Lot 219. This 23 1/2-inch high marble statue is completely naked but headless, armless and missing her legs below the thighs. It has an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000. It sold for $229,500. "The pose and complete nudity of this figure finds its closest parallels with the 'Capitoline Venus' in Rome.The Capitoline Venus and others like her have been interpreted as depicting the goddess surprised at her bath, hence her attempt to cover her breasts and pubes. However, this interpretation is now recognized as a 19th Century conceit, since there is no mythological basis to support it." The statue originally had the goddess resting her left hand on her right upper thigh and her right hand at her left breast. It has long tendrils of wavy hair falling on her shoulders and there is the remains of a support along her left side.
Lot 127 is a 9 3/4-inch high Roman bronze figure of Venus from the same period that shows the goddess removing a sandal while supporting herself by leaning on an amphora and holding pomegranites in his left hand. The lot, which has a very dark patina and comes from the Odesalchi Collection and shows evidence of repair to her right leg, has an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000. It sold for $45,410. Another very good work is Lot 224, a Roman bigio morato figure of a god, circa 2nd Century A.D., that is 65 inches tall. Bigio morato is a fine-grained gray marble that was in favor during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian. According to the catalogue this type of sculpture is based on the figure of Ares usually attributed to the sculptor Alkamenes, which originally stood in his temple in the Athenian Agora and is only known from Roman copies, the best of which is the "Ares Borghese" now in the Louvre. The headless and armless god is missing most of his right left and his left foot and has his mantle draped over a stump. It has an estimate of $90,000 to $120,000. It sold for $48,800. Eros is depicted in Lot 143, a Roman marble torso circa 1st Century A.D. The 32-inch statue is headess and missing its right arm, its left forearm and most of the lower legs. It depicts the god as an adolescent boy unstringing his bow, which is missing, and his wings are broken off on his back. The original version of this work is traditionally attributed to Lysippos and, the catalogue observed, once stood in a major sanctuary of Eros in Thespiai. The lot has an estimate of $90,000 to $120,000. It sold for $95,600.
Lot 112 is an excellent bronze portrait bust of a man, Roman, circa late 1st Century B.C.-early 1st Century A.D. The striking, 14 1/2-inch high sculpture has an "estimate on request," and is the catalogue's cover illustration. It sold for $724,500.
Lot 208 is a very charming and fine Roman bronze attachment in the form of a sea-lion. The work is dated circa 2nd Century A.D., and is 13 3/4 inches long. It has an estimate of $60,000 to $80,000. It failed to sell.
Lot 54 is an utterly charming Greek terracotta of Cupid and Pscyhe standing arm-in-arm. Cupid is nude with spread wings and Pscyhe wears a chiton. This 6-inch-high work has extensive original polychromy and a very, very modest estimate of $2,000 to $3,000. It sold for $1,912. It was formerly in the Petzholtz Collection is being sold as property of Professor and Mrs. Sid Port, the consignors of many of the auction's nicest works. Lot 91 is a very charming Etrusco-Campanian bronze horseman, 3 3/4 inches high. Dated to circa early 5th-Century B.C., this work was once in the Simonetti Collection and has a modest estimate of $3,000 to $5,000. It sold for $2,868. Lot 110 is an impressive sapphire portrait of King Alaric II. The Visigothic piece is 1 1/16 inches long and is dated circa 484-507 A.D. The stone has approximately 43 carats. King Alaric II was known for the Breviary of Alaric, issued in 506 at Toulouse, which was the Visigothic code of Roman law issued for his Roman subjects, according to the catalogue. "Alaric's adherence to Arianism, a sect of Christianity, lead to his defeat at Vouilli in 507 by Clovis I, king of the Franks, who waged war in the name of orthodoxy," the catalogue continued, adding that "a second seal, also in sapphire, with a similar portrait and identical inscription is in the Kunsthirorisches Museum in Vienna. The lot has an estimate of $80,000 to $120,000. It failed to sell.
Egyptian canopic jars contained an individual's innards and Lot 272, shown above, is a particularly fine lid from such a jar with a very beautiful depicting of the head of Hapy. The alabaster lid is 5 1/4 inches high and is dated to the Late Period, Dynasty XXVI-XXX, 664-343 B.C. It has a very conservative estimate of $3,000 to $5,000. It sold for $6,572.
Lot 284 is a large and impressive Egyptian bronze and gilt wood ibis, Late Period to Ptolemaic Period, 664-30 B.C. The piece is 17 1/4 inches high, and according to the catalogue the current owner's grandmother, Betty Rowe Bowdoin, received it as a gift from Jihan Sadat, the wife of Anwar Sadat. The top of the bird's body has a removable lid. The lot has an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000. It sold for $77,675.
Lot 282 is a nice bronze statue of Bastet, 5 inches high, that dates from the Late Period to Ptolemaic Period, 664-30 B.C., and has an estimate of $5,000 to $7,000. It sold for $8,365.
Lot 262, a very good Egyptian wood duck-form cosmetic vessel, 4 1/2 inches long, New Kingdom, Dynasty XVIII, 1550-1307 B.C., had a high estimate of $15,000 and sold for $26,290.
Lot 277, an Egyptian peridotite torso of an official, Late Period, Dynasty XXX, 380-343 B.C., had a high estimate of $35,000 and sold for $59,750. The 8-inch-high, headless figure, which was also missing its lower legs, was finely sculpted and its stone had a lovely soft green color.
A good Egyptian faience figure of a lion-headed goddess, Late Period to Ptolemaic Period, 664-30 B.C., had a high estimate of $1,800 and sold for $2,868. The 4 3/4-inch-high figure had a nice pale-green color and was very finely sculpted.
Lot 295, a very stunning Egyptian gilt cartonnage mummy mask, Roman Imperial Period, circa Early 1st Century A.D., had a high estimate of $90,000 and sold for $119,500. It was 17 3/4 inches high.
Lot 344 is a wonderful and very fine group of nine Achaemenid animal amulets, circa 6th-4th Century, B.C. The longest measures 15/16 of an inch. The lot has a very conservative estimate of $5,000 to $7,000. This lot failed to sell.
Lot 198, shown above, is a very impressive Roman glass dolphin beaker, cira late 4th Century A.D. The 6 1/2-inch-high beaker has an estimate of $175,000 to $225,000. This lot was withdrawn.
Lot 4, a fine headless marble Cycladic figure of a woman, early Spedos Variety, circa 2600-2500 B.C., had an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000 and sold for $89,625. The figure is 13 inches tall.
Lot 83, a late Hellenistic or early Roman bronze figure of Isis, circa 1st Century B.C., had a high estimate of $30,000 and sold for $38,240. The 13-inch-high figure was very nicely sculpted and quite substantial.
Lot 112, an impressive Roman marble portrait head of the Emperor Augustus, circa Late 1st Century B.C.-Early 1st Century A.D., fell in the middle of its estimate and sold for $152,500.
By and large, the auction was relatively successful and the casualties were mostly works whose condition left a lot to be desired. Lot 309, for example, was a 14 7/8-inch high Sumerian gypsum figure of a worshipper, Syria, Early Dynastic Period, circa 2700-2500 B.C. The lot had an estimate of $100,000 to $150,000 and Sumerian figures, especially of this size, are very highly prized by most collectors of antiquities, but this lot had a fair bit of damage, restoration.
Lot 352, a Bactrian silver figure of an ibex, 8 1/8 inches high, dating to about the 1st Century A.D., had an estimate of $50,000 to $70,000 and sold for $229,500.