A Marble Head of a Maenad on a Porphyry Bust of Sarapis, Roman Imperial, mid 1st /2nd century A.D.

the bust after the 4th century Greek cult statue of Sarapis at Alexandria attributed to Bryaxis, clad in a chiton and himation falling from the left shoulder, the head, perhaps that of a maenad, turned slightly to her right, with prominent chin, smiling parted lips, straight nose, and almond-shaped eyes, her centrally parted hair arranged in a melon coiffure, spiral ringlets framing the forehead, tied in a plait falling over the nape the neck, and surmounted by a pine wreath.

Sir Francis Cook, 1st Baronet (1817-1901), Doughty House, Richmond, Surrey, probably acquired after the late 1870s, subsequent to Adolf Michaelis's visit
Sir Frederic Cook, 2nd Baronet, Doughty House, Richmond, Surrey
Sir Herbert Cook, 3rd Baronet (1868-1939), Doughty House, Richmond, Surrey
Sir Francis Cook, 4th Baronet (1907-1978), sold shortly after WWII

Eugenie Strong, "Antiques in the Collection of Sir Frederic Cook, Bart., at Doughty House, Richmond," Journal of Hellenic Studies, vol. 28, 1908, p. 10, no. 8, fig. 1 (p.3)
Eugenie Strong, Antiques in the Collection of Sir Frederic Cook, Bart., at Doughty House, Richmond [re-print of JHS article], 1908, p. 12, no. 8, fig. 1 (p.6)
Richard Delbrueck, Antike Porphyrwerke (Studien zur spätantiken Kunstgeschichte, vol. 6), Berlin, 1932, p. 67
G.J.F Kater-Sibbes, Preliminary Catalogue of Sarapis Monuments, Leiden, 1973, pp. 187-188
Wilhelm Hornbostel, Sarapis: Studien zur Überlieferungsgeschichte den Erscheinungsformen und Wandlungen der Gestalt eines Gottes (Études préliminaires aux religions orientales dans l'Empire romain, vol. 32), Leiden, 1973, p. 87, and notes 3, 95, and 100, pl. XX, fig. 29

Bust slightly chipped around edges and most likely repolished, back of head, braid, and tip of nose restored in marble, face repolished and somewhat cut down - there is a column of scagliola-like material (painted in same color as pedestal) adhering to back of bust.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

In the early 18th century or earlier the present bust probably formed a pair with a similar one on the same scale at Chatsworth (Fig. 2: D. Boschung, H. von Hesberg, and A. Linfert, Die antiken Skulpturen in Chatsworth, sowie in Dunham Massey und Withington Hall [Monumenta Arts Romanae, XXVI], Mainz, 1997, no. 24). The Chatsworth example is also composed of a porphyry bust of Sarapis surmounted by a head of a woman. Perhaps not coincidentally, both the Cook Collection and Chatsworth heads are described as "archaistic" in their respective original publications. The yellow marble socle on the Chatsworth example appears to be original to the 17th/18th Century assemblage, whereas the oversize socle on the Cook example seems to be a replacement.

Other headless porphyry busts of Sarapis are in Venice and Cairo (Delbrueck, op. cit., p. 67, figs. 17-18); for additional examples in Rome see Hornbostel, op. cit., p. 87, note 3.

The present marble head bears the coiffure of the time of Agrippina Minor, who married emperor Claudius in A.D. 49. However her features, expression, and attribute are not those of a portrait, but rather those of an ecstatic maenad.

We are grateful to John Somerville, Keeper of the Cook Collection Archive, for his help in cataloguing this lot.