N08810

/

Lot 31
  • 31

A Marble Cinerary Urn inscribed for Gaius Aterius Cilo , Puteoli, Roman Imperial, circa 1st Century A.D.

Estimate
30,000 - 50,000 USD
Log in to view results
bidding is closed

Description

  • A Marble Cinerary Urn inscribed for Gaius Aterius Cilo
  • Marble
  • Height 10 3/4 by 13 1/2 by 12 1/4 in. 27.3 by 34.3 by 31.1 cm
of rectangular form, carved in front with two birds in flight holding a garland of leaves and fruits in their beak and flanking a tabula ansata engraved with two lines of Latin inscription reading C. Aterius Cilonis, the pedimented and voluted lid decorated in front with scrolling rosettes.

Provenance

said to have been found at Pozzuoli (modern Puteoli)
Father Giuseppe de Criscio (1826-1911), parish priest of Pozzuoli and antiquarian, acquired prior to 1878
Belgian private collection, 1970s

Literature

Theodorus Mommsen, Inscriptiones Bruttiorum, Lucaniae, Campaniae, Siciliae, Sardiniae latinae, Berlin, 1883, no. 8186 (= CIL X 8186)
Hans-Georg Pflaum, Les carrières procuratoriennes sous le Haut Empire romain, Paris, 1961, p. 185

Condition

Back leg visible in photo appears to be repaired and with areas of restoration obscured by paint, fresh shallow abrasions to rim where lid touches when moved, stress crack running parallel to volute through half of lid in left back corner, white paint stains or other substance over a wide area on top of the lid, very minor nicks overall, surface well preserved, relief decoration somewhat shallow and needs good raking light to be appreciated.
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.

Catalogue Note

The bulk of G. de Criscio's collection of ancient inscriptions, most of them found in Pozzuoli and surrounding towns, was acquired by the university of Michigan in 1899 (see S.L. Tuck, Latin Inscriptions in the Kelsey Museum: The Dennison and De Criscio Collections, Ann Arbor, Mich., 2005). Other pieces found their way to northern European collections, such as the two funerary altars by the croquet lawn of Nymans House at Handcross in Sussex (http://ciegl.classics.ox.ac.uk/html/webposters/71_Salway.pdf).