By Carter B. Horsley

The June 12, 2003 Antiquities auction at Sotheby's is highlighted by some fine Roman and Egyptian sculptures, a good Cycladic marble figure, and an interesting figure of a goddess or priestess from Bactria or Margiana.

The cover illustration of the auction catalogue is Lot 54, a marble portrait head of the Emperor Antoninius Pius, Roman Imperial, A.D. 138-161. The 13 1/2-inch high head is, according to the catalogue, "probably from a statue showing him as a general in full armor." "Like his father Hadrian," the entry continued, "he is wearing the philosopher's beard, a sign that he wanted to show himself not only as a man of action, but also as a thinker steeped in Greek philosophy and cultureHis portraiture changed several times during his twenty-three year reign. These changes, however, did not reflect the increasing age of the rule.On the contrary every new portrait type showed him at the same age he was when taking power, around fifty years old, with slight changes only in the arrangment of his hair over the forehead.The present head conforms, with slight variations, to a style probably created by his court sculptors on the tenth anniversary of his accession, when games and festivals called the decennalia were celebrated throughout the empire. The style is called Sala a Croce Greca 595, after the room in which a foremost example of the type was displayed in the Vatican Museums."

The sculpture, which is finely carved and conveys a noble bearing and is in very good condition except for a bashed nose, has an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000. It sold for $478,400 including the buyer's premium as do all the results mentioned in this article. About 82 percent of the offered lots sold, a good percentage and just a little more than recorded by Christie's the night before. This sale, however, recorded numerous extraordinarily high prices.

A fitting companion to the Emperor's head is Lot 29, a marble head of a Maenad or Nioble, shown at the top of this article. The late Hellenistic/Early Roman Imperial head is dated circa 1st Century B.C.-1st Century A.D. It is 12 1/4 inches high and has an estimate of $100,000 to $150,000. With her turned and raised head and plentiful tresses, the head possesses considerable grace and beauty. It sold for $176,000.

Another fine head is Lot 28, head of a warrior, marble, 12 inches high, Roman, 1st Century B.C./1st Century A.D. The catalogue entry notes that this head was "inspired by a mid 4th Century Greek original by Skopas" and wears an Attic helmut decorated with volutes above the ears. It offers a quotation from "The Sculpture and Sculptors of the Greeks," by A. Stewart, that heads by Skopas "tend to be cubic and craggy, with a strong bone structure and compressed features: mouths are open, nostrils dilated, eyes deep-sunk beneath bulging lids, and chins and foreheads jut. This selection of expressive devices so suitable for both victor and vanquished alike bridged the two hitherto conflicting demands that battle involve strong emotions, and that heroes should be impassioned and constant. In short, this is no mere momentary pathos but an all-pervading intensity of feeling that defines the true hero's whole ethos and arete, his enduring 'strength relative to his world.'"

The lot has a modest estimate of $40,000 to $60,000. It failed to sell.

The auction has some less expensive but nonetheless nice works from the same general period. Lot 23 is a Hellenistic marble head of a woman, circa 3rd Century B.C., that is 6 inches high and has a modest estimate of $5,000 to $8,000. It sold for $10,800.

Lot 25 is a marble figure of Cybele, Roman Imperial, circa 1st Century A.D. The 10 3/4-inch high sculpture is worn but particularly nice in its composition of the goddess seated on a throne flanked by two lions. According to the catalogue, this work was "ultimately derived from the Pheidian prototype of the 5th Century B.C., the Mother of the Gods seated on a throne flanked by two lions, her feet resting on a low footstool and her left hand steadying a tympanon on the throne's arm-rest, her fragmentary right hand once holding a phiale, and wearing a short-sleeved chiton and a long himation draped over her head, shoulders and lap. her wavy hair parted in the center and surmounted by a stephane and polos, a Greek inscription on the front of the base." The lot has a conservative estimate of $10,000 to $15,000. It sold for $30,000.

Lot 42 is a lovely and vigorous Greek gilt terracotta applique of a lion attaching a horse. From Tarentum circa 350-325 B.C., the applique is 5 5/16 inches long and was once in the collection of the Erlenmeyer Foundation of Basel. The catalogue notes that "terracotta appliques of this type were used to decorate wooden sarcophagi." It has a very conservative estimate of $2,000 to $3,000. It sold for $5,100.

The back-cover illustration of the catalogue has another work from Tarentum, a Greek terracotta antefix, Lot 43, circa mid-6th Century B.C., that is molded in relief with a gorgon's face with a grinning mouth with long curved fangs. It also was formerly in the collection of the Erlenmeyer Foundation. It measures 7 1/2 by 10 1/8 inches and has an estimate of $10,000 to $15,000. It sold for $22,800.

Lot 52 is an extremely handsome pottery vessel that depicts a bust of Silenus. A lead-glazed pottery vessel with a fine glaze, it is late Hellenistic/early Roman Imperial, circa 1st Century B.C./1st Century A.D. The 9 1/4-inch work is missing its handle, but the face and robe are so charmingly done that the loss does not impair its impressiveness. It had an estimate of $30,000 to $40,000. It failed to sell.

Lot 61 is a very handsome Greek bronze figure of a winged boar standing on the top of an Ionic capital. The 2 5/8-inch high sculpture has a green patina and is particularly striking despite its small size. It has an estimate of $12,000 to $18,000. It sold for $30,000.

Lot 70 is a very, very charming bronze applique of Leda and the Swan. The piece is Roman Imperial, circa 1st Century A.D., and is 5 13/16 inches high. It has an estimate of $25,000 to $35,000. It sold for $39,000.

Among the Egyptian works in the auction is Lot 80, a limestone canopic jar cover depicting the head of a man with a short striated beard and wig. The catalogue dates the work to 12th Dynasty, probably reign of Amenemhat III, 1818-1772 B.C. The work has been consigned by the Milwaukee Art Museum to benefit its acquisition funds and had formerly been deaccessioned by the Drexel Institute of Art, Science and Industry in Philadelphia in 1916 and from the Minneapolis Institute of Arts in 1958. It is 4 3/4 inches high and has a conservative estimate of $6,000 to $9,000. It sold for $45,000.

One of the auction's most spectacular and impressive works is Lot 115, an Egyptian polychrome wood sacrophagus inner cover that is 74 3/4 inches high. The work is dated Late 19th/Early 20th Dynasty, circa 1203-1156 B.C. It has a conservative estimate of $70,000 to $90,000. It sold for $84,000.

One of the major Egyptian works is Lot 82, an impressive granite head of the Goddess Mut that is dated 18th Dynasty, 1332-1319. The 14 3/4-inch-high head has an estimate of $100,000 to $150,000. It sold for $344,000.

Lot 119 is a very fine blue-green Egyptian faience amulet of a lion that is 2 15/18-inches long and is dated 30th Dynasty/Early Ptolemaic Period, circa 380-200 B.C. It has an estimate of $10,000 to $15,000. It sold for $16,800. Lot 98 is an excellent Egyptian limestone relief fragment from the 26th Dynasty, reign of Psamtik I, 664-610 B.C. The relief is 7 1/8 inches high and has a modest estimate of $15,000 to $20,000. It sold for $176,000. The catalogue notes that the relief is carved with the head of a foreigner, "probably a Libyan."

Lot 101 is a beautifully modeled Egyptian basalt head of a man that is 4 1/4 inches high. The head is dated 27-30th Dynasty, 625-342 B.C. It has an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000. It sold for $456,000.

Lot 102 is a marvelous remnant of a magical block statue of Padihornedjitef that is covered with very hieroglyphics. The green schist statue is 13 5/16 inches high and is missing the top half of Padihornedjitef, who was priest of Memphis. It has a modest estimate of $50,000 to $70,000. It sold for $164,800.

Lot 103 is a red-granite sphinx in very nice condition from Nubia and the Meriotic Period, 300 B.C.-300 A.D. The 19-inch-long statue has a modest estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $36,000.

A particularly fine Egyptian statue is a serpentine or steatite ushabti of Kasa, Lot 84. The 7 5/8-inch high statue is finely detailed and dates to the 19th Dynasty, reign of Sety (Ramesses II), 1290-1213 B.C. It has an estimate of $100,000 to $150,000. It sold for $164,800.

Lot 128 is a figure of a goddess made of green chlorite, marble and lapis lazuli from Bactria or Margiana, circa 2300-2000 B.C. The 3 3/4-inch-high sculpture consists of four parts. It has an estimate of $60,000 to $80,000. It sold for $72,000.

Lot 242 is a very fine warrior figure made of either bronze or copper. The Syrian or Canaanite work is circa mid-2nd Millenium B.C. The 5 3/4-inch-high figure has an estimate of $4,000 to $6,000. It sold for $6,000.

The auction has several Cycladic marble figures. One of the nicest is a small figure of a goddess from the Early Bronze Age I, circa 3200-2700 B.C. The 3 11/16-inch-high figure has an estimte of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $51,000.