Classical Numismatic Group, LLC
Electronic Auction 393 15 March 2017
View prices realized
► Sale information
Find similar lots
Bronze bull on stand. Roman, probably Asia Minor, circa 1st-2nd century AD. Cast bull standing on rectangular pedestal. Height: 4.6cm. Green patina. Numerous light scratches. Hilprecht Collection, no. 118.
From the David Hendin Collection, purchased in Jerusalem from J. Zadok, 2002.
From the Hilprecht catalog: As is the case with so many of the other animal figurines in the Hilprecht collection, all the bulls seem to have been ex votos. Many are in fact set on small plinths or, in exceptional cases, on pedestal bases that may suggest altars...apart from the common thread of bull imagery in the ancient world, with its fertility symbolism, bull figurines may have been considered appropriate because the animal itself was the quintessential animal of sacrifice. Another possibility is that the bulls were considered appropriate for specific cults, for instance those of Dionysus or Jupiter.
The Hilprecht/Penn Museum example is a near exact match for the current specimen. That piece was acquired in the bazaar of Constantinople in late 1909.
From the David Hendin Collection, purchased in Jerusalem from J. Zadok, 2002.
From the Hilprecht catalog: As is the case with so many of the other animal figurines in the Hilprecht collection, all the bulls seem to have been ex votos. Many are in fact set on small plinths or, in exceptional cases, on pedestal bases that may suggest altars...apart from the common thread of bull imagery in the ancient world, with its fertility symbolism, bull figurines may have been considered appropriate because the animal itself was the quintessential animal of sacrifice. Another possibility is that the bulls were considered appropriate for specific cults, for instance those of Dionysus or Jupiter.
The Hilprecht/Penn Museum example is a near exact match for the current specimen. That piece was acquired in the bazaar of Constantinople in late 1909.