A Large Alabaster Bowl, Roman Egypt, circa 1st/2nd Century A.D.

Eugen Spiro (1874-1972), New York

Gorny & Mosch, Munich, Kunst der Antike, Auktionskatalog 145, December 14th, 2005, no. 492A, illus.

acquired by the present owner at the above sale

For a bronze version of the present bowl, see Charles Ede, Ltd., London, Vita Romana. Antiquities from the Roman World, 2009, no. 14, illus.

Eugen Spiro (1874-1972) was a German painter and member of the avant-garde Seccessionist groups of early 20th century Europe. He was appointed Chairman of the Berlin Seccession and Professor of the Academy of Arts in 1914, but the rise of National Socialism forced him to flee to Paris in 1935. There he co-founded and directed the Union des Artistes Allemands Libres, an association of exiled or escaped German artists whose work was denounced by Nazi authorities. Forced to flee Nazi rule again in 1940, he settled in New York, where he continued his artistic practice until his late years. He is known for painting New York City landscapes in a fluid, impressionistic style, and portraits of his German émigré circle, including Albert Einstein, Thomas Mann and Artur Schnabel.