Books for Pleasure & Research, Antiquarian Books & Prints, Catalogs, Periodicals & More…

One of the resources we offer visitors to our website is a selection of books for both pleasure & research, antiquarian books & prints, catalogs and periodicals, all dealing with antiquities collecting and auctions, ancient history and ancient art.

Our selection includes some fine examples of professionally mounted and framed art with themes relating to antiquity, such as this 19th Century English print with scenes of classical mythology -

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i368.html

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i390.html

We also offer unframed artwork with antiquarian themes, such as the marvelous 1820 print above illustrating Greek vases from the collection of Sir Henry Englefield.

Antiquarian books are always a favorite, such as this copy of Babylonian Life and History by the famed Biblical archaeologist E. Wallis Budge, printed in 1897 -

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i249.html

For the reader with a more general interest in the ancient world, we offer selections of popular books, such as this group of 3 books dealing with Late Antiquity -

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i335.html

And for the antiquities collector we always have a substantial number of antiquities auction catalogs from the London and New York auction houses. These are difficult to find once the auction has ended and expensive to purchase in advance. As many antiquities circulate through the market over the years, serious collectors are keen to acquire these groups of catalogs. In addition to being fully illustrated, these catalogs help to establish provenance for the objects included. Here is an example of one set of catalogs for sale on our site -

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i432.html

View all our offerings in our Books, Publications and Art section here: http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/c25_p1.html

ANTIQUITY OF THE WEEK

OUR OFFERING FOR “ANTIQUITY OF THE WEEK” THIS WEEK IS A SUPERB AND RARE ROMAN GLASS MARBLED UNGUENTARIUM.

Link to this object on our website: http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i84.html

CULTURE / REGION OF ORIGIN: Roman Empire; Italy or Eastern Mediterranean.
DATE: First half of the 1st Century CE
DIMENSIONS: 10.2 cm (4 in.) tall

DESCRIPTION: Roman unguentarium of amber-yellow glass with opaque milk-white trailing that has been marvered flush with the vessel’s surface. The vessel’s body is spherical with a slightly concave flattened base without a pontil mark, a tubular neck tapering towards the top, and a rim that folds outward and has been rounded and thickened at the edge. From the base to the rim runs a white spiral trail that makes multiple revolutions and has been dragged up and down six or seven times to create a broad festoon pattern. The vessel has been expertly reassembled from a few large fragments; very stable and otherwise intact.

PROVENANCE: Formerly in a Welsh private collection formed between the 1970s and 2008.

PUBLISHED: Bonhams, London, ANTIQUITIES, 29 April, 2009, Lot #302, listed and illustrated on Page 174.

SPECIAL NOTES: Most early Roman blown glass vessels, such as this example, have pear shaped bodies and continue to use the strong color contrasts of earlier core formed glass. As blown glass became more common and cheaper these strong colors were replaced by simple clear glass, of which many examples are available on our website.

COMPARISONS: E. Marianne Stern, Roman, Byzantine and Early Medieval Glass, 10 BCE-700 CE, Ernesto Wolf Collection, 2001, Cat. Numbers 2, 3 & 4 for closely related examples. Also, Yael Israeli, Wonders of Ancient Glass at the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, 1998, page 26 for several related examples.

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i84.html

Holiday Gift Giving Preview

With the holiday season approaching, it’s time to begin thinking about appropriate gifts. Clio Ancient Art and Antiquities offers a wide selection of genuinely unique items, in every price range, for the art collector, history enthusiast or other difficult to shop for recipient on your list. 

Many genuine, fine quality items may be had for less than $100, as well as far more expensive antiquities for the discerning collector. Of course, we will be adding more fine items to our stock as the holidays approach but this is just a sample of some popular, less expensive holiday gift items. Enjoy.

 

 

Egyptian Faience Bead Necklace, 300 BC-200 AD, $255

 

 

 

 

 

 http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i289.html

Early Roman Bronze Brooch, $92.50

 

 

 http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i459.html

Postumus, British Usurper Emperor AD 260-269. Silver Antoninianus, $42.50

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i448.html 

Roman Glass Pendant Beads, 4th-5th Century, $87.50

 http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i36.html

Roman Provincial Coin, Orichalcum 5 Assarion of Gordion III

AD 238-244

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i426.html 

Roman Empire, Bronze AE3 of Constantius II, AD 337-361, $28.50

 http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i455.html

Byzantine Pottery Oil Lamp, Holy Land, 6^th Century AD. $155.00

 http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i404.html

Byzantine Openwork Cross and Pelta Buckle, 7th Century, $157.50  

 http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i188.html  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Antiquity of the Week

Last week we began a new weekly series, “Antiquity of the Week” to focus on selected examples of ancient art currently on our website at http://www.clioancientart.com/index.html.

This week we offer a large mold-made Roman red slip ware flask from North Africa, dating to the 3rd Century AD. Here are the details –

Web link: http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i204.html

Roman Red Slip Ware Flask
CULTURE / REGION OF ORIGIN: Roman North Africa (modern Tunisia)
DATE: Circa 3rd Century CE
DIMENSIONS: 16 cm (5.25 in.) tall.

DESCRIPTION: A Roman North African red slip pottery flask with applied decoration. The fabric is very fine and the vessel thin walled and light. The piriform vessel is decorated with appliques, including nude male figures with drapery, possibly depicting Herakles, on either side, with a lion or panther running beneath. Other appliques include three tall palm branches, one to either side of the handle and one between the male figures, and above each male figure a victor’s crown bearing a pair of laurel sprays and central rosette. The handle is mould made and bears a detailed palm branch in relief along its entire height. A simple double moulding below the mouth defines the decorated area of the vessel’s body, and the mouth itself is flattened, projecting outward. The vessel rests on a small splayed foot. Reassembled from fragments but complete with no fill. An impressive example.

 

PROVENANCE: Ex Dr. Harley Baxter (1947-2009) Collection, Melbourne, Australia.

 

COMPARISONS: For a very closely related example, see The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Accession number 74.51.383, part of the Cesnola Collection, reassembled from fragments: http://metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/74.51.383
Also, John W. Hayes, Roman Pottery in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, 1976, Number 96 (Plate 12). Also, Christies antiquities sale of 8 June, 2004 (Sale 1384, Lot 166) for another similar example, also reassembled from fragments, that brought $1,434.00.

 

As the demand for high quality Roman red slip pottery, frequently referred to as Samian Ware, outpaced the supply in the 1st Century AD, local imitation and variations sprang up at workshops all around the Mediterranean, especially in North Africa and Asia Minor. The North African examples, made in the Roman province that now corresponds to Tunisia, had the most longevity, with fine quality pottery and oil lamps continuing in production well into the 6th Century.

 

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i204.html

 

Below is a 2nd Century AD example of locally produced red ware from western Asia Minor, gifted by our Trust for Ancient Art and now in the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, California.

 

 

 

Fine quality red ware ceramic oil lamps are perhaps the best known output from the North African pottery workshops of the later Roman period. Many examples of 4th Century AD onwards display Christian symbolism. Here is an earlier example of the 2nd Century with an unusual motif of a dwarf or pygmy holding an amphora

 

http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i128.html

Our Move is Complete

We've completed our long planned move from Charlotte, NC to the historic coastal City of Wilmington, NC. We will begin posting again in just a couple of days. Meanwhile, visit us at:
http://www.clioancientart.com/

Not an Antiquity but an Extraordinary Object, Just the Same

An extraordinary manuscript is to be auctioned in London, October 8 — An unusual Qur’an manuscript, written from memory by Ayub bin Suleyman (Job, son of Solomon), a former slave, originally from the kingdom of Foota (modern Senegal), who had been taken into slavery, transported to America, escaped from his owners in Maryland, made his way to England and eventually home to west Africa. Dated AD 1733 Here is the link to this object at Bonhams auction house in London — http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/21359/lot/137/?page_anchor=MR1_page_lots%3D2%26r1%3D100%26m1%3D1

Antiquity of the Week: Roman Marble Fragmentary Eros Sculpture

Beginning this week we will post detailed information once each week about one particular antiquity from our inventory.

We begin with a Roman marble fragmentary Eros sculpture.
 


Here are the basic facts on this piece -

CULTURE / REGION OF ORIGIN: Roman Empire, possibly western Asia Minor
DATE:1st or 2nd Century CE
DIMENSIONS: 17.2 cm. (6.7 in.) long, 10.8 cm (4.2 in.) wide, 8 cm (3.1 in.) deep

DESCRIPTION:A Roman marble relief fragment of Eros, probably from an architectural relief or sarcophagus panel. the figure’s posture is such that it may be reclining, hovering in a larger scene or stepping downward or forward with the left leg. The figure is preserved from just above the navel to the ankles, with the legs parted, one leg bent at the knee more than the other. The figure has the rounded belly and chubby legs typical of Roman Erotes. The preserved surfaces are smooth, with only a few chips. The marble is medium grained with a faintly tan or beige patina, with a few small areas of darker brown and gray discoloration. The bottom section has received two drill holes in the modern period for mounting on a display stand. The flat back side, possibly the interior wall of the sarcophagus panel, has slight remains of a modern adhesive material.

PROVENANCE: Ex UK Private collection

PUBLISHED: Bonhams, ANTIQUITIES, 1 May, 2008, London, Page 206, illustrated in color on Page 207

The posture and general style of this partially preserved figure of Eros suggest it was once part of a much larger sculpted panel composition on a marble sarcophagus. The particular crystalline characteristics of the marble suggest either an Italian origin or stone from western Asia Minor. From the lateFirst Century BCE onward Roman sarcophagai were frequently adorned all around with deep relief figural sculpture. Some examples are noted in the COMPARISONS below.


COMPARISONS: For related examples of Erotes from sarcophagai, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston website (www.mfa.org/collections/search), Accession Number 76.719 for a fragment of a sarcophagus with Erotes playing with a Silenos mask, one of them having fallen on his back. Also, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston website (www.mfa.org/collections/search, Accession Number 1973.480, with 2 Erotes or Amorini in very high relief, dated 200-225 CE.

 Note that this item will likely be consigned to a one year exhibit of Mediterranean antiquities at the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte, NC, beginning Spring of 2014.