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THBRare Byzantine Incised Silver Fork - 21.6 grams
Lot 100c
About Seller
Artemis Gallery
686 S Taylor Ave, Ste 106
Louisville, CO 80027
United States
Selling antiquities, ancient and ethnographic art online since 1993, Artemis Gallery specializes in Classical Antiquities (Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern), Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal / Oceanographic art. Our extensive inventory includes pottery, stone, metal, wood, glass and textil...Read more
Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Estimate:
$3,500 - $5,000
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| $10,000 | $1,000 |
| $20,000 | $2,500 |
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| $100,000 | $10,000 |
| $200,000 | $20,000 |
About Auction
Live
By Artemis Gallery
Feb 21, 2019
Set Reminder
2019-02-21 10:00:00
2019-02-21 10:00:00
America/New_York
Bidsquare
Bidsquare : Exceptional Antiquities, Asian, Ethnographic
https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-antiquities-asian-ethnographic-3858
An important one-day auction featuring museum-worthy examples of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Etruscan, Near Eastern, Far East / Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Native American, Spanish Colonial, Russian, Fossils, Ancient Jewelry, Fine Art, so much more! Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
An important one-day auction featuring museum-worthy examples of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Etruscan, Near Eastern, Far East / Asian, Pre-Columbian, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Native American, Spanish Colonial, Russian, Fossils, Ancient Jewelry, Fine Art, so much more! Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com
View Full Catalog (472)
- Lot Description
Near East/Holy Land, Byzantine Empire, ca. 12th to 15th century CE. An incredibly rare 92% silver fork of delicate form, with incised motifs above its tines. The handle is long and thin, capped by a small ball. It curves sharply before it meets the head of the fork, which branches outward into three long, thin, tapering tines. The motifs above the tines are an anchor, a cross, and a small triangular form that joins them together - probably the personal mark of the owner of the fork. Size: 0.6" W x 6.6" H (1.5 cm x 16.8 cm); 6.6" H (16.8 cm) on included custom stand; 21.6 grams total weight
Although spoons and knives were used throughout antiquity, forks were a relatively late addition to the Mediterranean table. We believe that Persian nobles used something like them in the 9th century, and they had arrived in the Byzantine Empire by the 11th century - there is a manuscript showing two men using two-pronged instruments at a table, and a harsh criticism of a Byzantine-born Venetian princess by St. Peter Damian: "[S]uch was the luxury of her habits... [that] she deigned not to touch her food with her fingers, but would command her eunuchs to cut it up into small pieces, which she would impale on a certain golden instrument with two prongs and thus carry to her mouth." He included this description in a diatribe against the princess's vanity - a sin so terrible that he described her later death from plague as a just punishment from God. The fork continued to be regarded skeptically in the medieval world beyond the Byzantine Empire and Islamic Middle East, perhaps, as one scholar suggests, due to its resemblance to the devil's pitchfork.
Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-Frances Artuner collection, Belgium, acquired in the 1960s
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.
We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#143876Light patina in places. In beautiful condition with clear incised motif.Condition
- Shipping Info
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