Lot 40
  • 40

A Roman Marble Cinerary Urn of Baebia Satyra and M. Catonius Threptus, circa Late 1st Century A.D.

Estimate
15,000 - 25,000 USD
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Description

  • A Roman Marble Cinerary Urn of Baebia Satyra and M. Catonius Threptus
  • Marble
  • 13 1/4 by 13 7/8 by 11 5/8 in. 33.6 by 35.2 by 29.5 cm.
the front carved in high relief with two erotes holding a foliate garland supporting a siren, and flanking a recessed rectangular panel carved with eight lines of Latin inscription translating “To the Spirits of the Departed. Catonia Iusta, their daughter, made (this) for her most pious and indulgent mother and father, Baebia Satyra and M. Catonius Threptus,” the sides each carved in shallow relief with an olive tree and an egret-like bird eating the fruit.

Provenance

Luigi Giovanni Andrea V Doria-Pamphilj (1779-1829), Villa Doria-Pamphilj, Rome, recorded there in 1822 by Marchese Giuseppe Melchiorri (1796-1856), author of Guida metodica di Roma, 1834, and director of the Capitoline Museum, 1838-1856
John M. Quinn (Sotheby's, New York, November 29th, 1989, no. 133, illus.)
Dr. Roy Isla (Sotheby's, New York, December 9th, 1999, no. 330, illus.)
Christie's, New York, A Palladian Villa by Michael S. Smith, April 23rd-24th, 2013, no. 174, illus.

Literature

Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, vol. VI: Inscriptiones urbis Romae Latinae, part II: E. Bormann, G. Henzen, and Chr. Huelsen, Monumenta columbariorum. Tituli officialium et artificium. Tituli sepulcrales reliqui: A-Claudius, Berlin, 1882, no. 13493 (CIL VI 13493)
Samuel Glenn Harrod, Latin Terms of Endearment and of Family Relationship, Princeton, 1909, p. 56
Heikki Solin, Die griechischen Personennamen in Rom, 2nd ed., 2003, vol. 1, p. 439
József Herman, Du latin aux langues romanes II: Nouvelles études de linguistique historique, 2006, p. 108

Condition

Back and one side repaired from a few fragments, held together with rusted iron clamps, some rust staining to back, upper cornice mostly fragmentary, proper left arm missing from putto to right, proper right hand missing from putto to left, proper right side of siren's head missing, surface slightly weathered.
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

For an urn with similar decoration in front see F. Sinn, Stadtrömische Marmorurnen, Mainz am Rhein, 1987, p. 125, no. 130, pl. 32 (dated late in the reign of Claudius/reign of Nero).