Translated Roman Limestone Funerary Stele of Couple

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Exceptional Antiquities Ethnographic Fine Art...

By Artemis Gallery

Mar 24, 2022

Set Reminder 2022-03-24 10:00:00 2022-03-24 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Exceptional Antiquities Ethnographic Fine Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-antiquities-ethnographic-fine-art-9057
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• Lot Description
  Roman, Imperial period, Eastern Empire, ca. 2nd to 3rd century CE. A captivating limestone stele of a massive, rectangular form, skillfully hand-carved to display the relief image of a husband and wife standing in an aedicula or petite shrine comprised of a pediment supported by a pair of columns to form a niche. The endearing couple gazes forward, the man wears a tunic beneath a toga, indicative of his status as a Roman citizen, while the woman is draped in a long veil and a floor-length stola, the traditional garment of married citizen women, that belts just below her bust and cascades down her slender body in billowing folds of sumptuous fabric. The area below the figures presents liberal remains of an Ancient Greek funerary inscription stating that the stele is from the husband, who commissioned the piece, to his recently departed wife. Though difficult to decipher, based on the legible letters and funerary inscriptions contemporary with this piece, the epitaph likely translates to, "Farewell, honored and virtuous lady (or wife), indeed farewell." Size: 5.5" L x 12.6" W x 32" H (14 cm x 32 cm x 81.3 cm)
  
  An anthemion or palmette adorns the top-most point of the pediment, which contains a rosette and is flanked by 2 more, as well as 2 half anthemia at the peripheries of the stele. Stepping towards his dearly beloved with his right foot, the husband reaches out his right hand to grasp that of his wife in a stance known as the handshake motif or dextarum iunctio - a pose used commonly throughout Classical funerary art. A pair of Doric columns flank the sweet couple, upholding a triangular pediment that balances above them forming the aedicula. A pair of piercings and remains of rust can be seen above the couple, suggesting a metal plaque bearing an engraved message was once held here. A touching example that simultaneously highlights the transience of life, the ephemerality of relationships, and, yet also, the everlasting nature of both love and art.
  
  Truly a marvel; this piece is rife with symbolism of life's largest and ultimate transition: death. The couple is shown not just standing together, but shaking hands - a traditional symbol of harmony, affinity, friendship, and loyalty. In the funerary context, however, this gesture bears an even greater meaning: this simple embrace between 2 lovers alludes to their parting at death, their reunion in the afterlife, and the idea that the strength of their feeling for one another can cross the barrier of death itself. Similarly, their placement in an aedicula may be read as passing through a gateway, possibly a tomb or Hades, indicating their positioning on the threshold between this world and the next. The anthemia serve as an additional symbol as they habitually represent rebirth, while the rosettes are commonly associated with mourning and death as the depicting of these flowers as perpetually ageless serves as an expression of the Roman belief the soul's continued existence. Romans also thought of the bones or ashes of the deceased of generating flowers, as another Roman epitaph reads: "Here lies Optatus, a child ennobled by devotion: I pray that his ashes may be violets and roses, and I ask that the Earth, who is his mother now, be light upon him, for the boy's life was a burden to no one." (J.M.C. Toynbee, Death and Burial in the Roman World [Johns Hopkins University Press, 1971, 1996], pp. 37)
  
  Prior to the 2nd century, Romans cremated their dead; around that time, inspired by the Greek and Etruscan practice of using sarcophagi, they began to place their dead in sarcophagi. This trend spread rapidly throughout the Roman Empire. In the western part of the Empire, sarcophagi were placed inside a mausoleum against a wall or in a niche, so the only decorated panels were on the front and the short sides. This stele probably came from the grave of a high-status Roman citizen.
  
  Cf. Grave altar of Ti. Claudius Dionysius, Museo Gregoriano Profano, Vatican, Ash chest of Vestricius Hyginus and Vestricia Hetera, Galleria delle Statue, Vatican, and the British Museum, 1856,1103.1, 1856,0710.26, and 1856,0710.25.
  
  Provenance: private Cody, Wyoming, USA collection, acquired in 1991; ex-Alan Cherry, Bournemouth, UK, imported into the USA in 1993
  
  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.
  
  PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
  
  Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
  
  #170372

  Condition

  Losses to bottom left corner, as well as chipping with minor losses to peripheries. Softening of some details, especially to the faces of the figures and the inscription, though overall composition is still very clear. Nicks, pitting, and abrasions throughout, commensurate with age. Loss of metal plaque with some patina left behind. Otherwise, excellent.
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