Published Roman Bronze Right Arm Lifesize ex-Christie's

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Exceptional Antiquities, Asian, Ethnographic

By Artemis Gallery

Jun 4, 2020

Set Reminder 2020-06-04 10:00:00 2020-06-04 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Exceptional Antiquities, Asian, Ethnographic https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-antiquities-asian-ethnographic-5185
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• Lot Description
  Roman, Imperial Period, ca. 2nd to 3rd century CE. A cast bronze right arm and hand from a life-size - or more than life-size statue of a man or god. Indeed, it is oversized - I am not going out on a limb here (no pun intended). The arm is complete, cast from three joined pieces (upper arm, forearm, and hand) joined via a lead compound. Note the naturalistic rendering, delineating the musculature as well as the extended hand with fingers posed as if it once held a scepter or spear, in addition to the skillfully rendered digits with nail beds and knuckles. Size: 29.5" L (74.9 cm); 14.75" H (37.5 cm) on included custom stand.
  
  In the Classical World, bronze was the preferred material for dedicatory sculpture. Due to its high tensile strength, bronze enabled a sculptor to create figures with impressive poses. Stone, on the other hand (no pun intended), presented more limitations. Unfortunately, though many bronze sculptures were created during antiquity, most have vanished with far fewer surviving in comparison to their marble counterparts, as bronze sculptures were frequently melted down, so that the bronze could be reused. Because of this, surviving Roman bronzes like this example are very special.
  
  In addition, life-size or monumental statues were built via the lost-wax casting method and sections were soldered together to create the figure. Due to this production method, when statues fell during battle or natural disasters, these joins were weak points. Hence we have more bronze fragments than intact statues today.
  
  This piece was published in "Reflections of the Past" (Fortuna Fine Arts, New York, New York, 2001) - figure 49.
  
  A similar Roman cast bronze right arm sold for $100,000 at Christies New York, 9 December 2015, Lot 68 - https://www.christies.com/lotfinder/ancient-art-antiquities/a-roman-bronze-right-arm-circa-1st-3rd-5958641-details.aspx?from=searchresults&intObjectID=5958641&sid=f7f63217-77dd-4ffc-a287-dd8f87a4044e
  
  Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-William Froelich collection, New York, USA, acquired in the 1980s
  
  All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
  
  A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
  
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  #145847

  Condition

  Remains of iron pins on the arm for attaching other elements. Minor losses to edge of upper arm. An old loss to outer wrist and palm. Casting flaw to the thumb. Normal surface wear commensurate with age. Beautiful warm patina with areas of bright green patina as shown.
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