2012.1.85: Bone Disk (Spindle Whorl?)

Identification and Creation

Object Number

2012.1.85

Title

Bone Disk (Spindle Whorl?)

Classification

Tools and Equipment

Work Type

spindle whorl

Date

1st-5th century

Period

Roman Imperial period

Culture

Roman

Persistent Link

https://hvrd.art/o/148124

Physical Descriptions

Medium

Bone

Technique

Carved

Dimensions

3.89 cm (1 9/16 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History

The Alice Corinne McDaniel Collection, Department of the Classics, Harvard University (before 1970-2012), transfer; to the Harvard Art Museums, 2012.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Transfer from the Alice Corinne McDaniel Collection, Department of the Classics, Harvard University

Accession Year

2012

Object Number

2012.1.85

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Contact

am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

Permissions

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Descriptions

Description

Lathe-turned bone disk, perhaps a spindle whorl, game token, or furniture decoration. Around the edge and central hole are a series of concentric bands. The disc is domed on one side, flat on the other. The surface is chipped and scratched in places.

Publication History

• John Crawford, Sidney Goldstein, George M. A. Hanfmann, John Kroll, Judith Lerner, Miranda Marvin, Charlotte Moore, and Duane Roller, Objects of Ancient Daily Life. A Catalogue of the Alice Corinne McDaniel Collection Belonging to the Department of the Classics, Harvard University, ed. Jane Waldbaum, Department of the Classics (unpublished manuscript, 1970), BI48, p. 143 [J. A. Lerner]

Subjects and Contexts

• Roman Domestic Art

Verification Level