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Identification and Creation

Object Number
2012.1.115
Title
Tripod Ornament in the Form of Bacchus
Classification
Vessels
Work Type
holder
Date
2nd-5th century CE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Europe
Period
Roman Imperial period
Culture
Roman
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/191508

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Leaded brass
Technique
Cast, lost-wax process
Dimensions
10.5 x 4.7 x 7.1 cm (4 1/8 x 1 7/8 x 2 13/16 in.)
Technical Details

Chemical Composition: XRF data from Artax 1
Alloy: Leaded Brass
Alloying Elements: copper, lead, zinc
Other Elements: tin, iron
K. Eremin, January 2014

Technical Observations: The patina is very dark green with spots of red. Dark burial accretions are present. The surface is fairly well preserved. There is a fracture and loss on the back of the bottom edge.

The ornament is a solid cast, probably from a wax model created using a mold. The facial features and hair may have been slightly enhanced with cold working. The lower section is at least partially hollow, probably to allow insertion of a tripod leg.


Henry Lie (submitted 2012)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[C. Dikran Kelekian, Ancient Arts, New York, 1983] sold; to The Alice Corinne McDaniel Collection, Department of the Classics, Harvard University (1983-2012), 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
2012.1.115
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums
This tripod ornament is in the form of a bust of Bacchus, the Roman god of wine and revelry, rising out of a calyx of leaves above a base (1). There is no indication of arms below the shoulders, under which two relatively long leaves extend; short, round leaves line his waist. Bacchus wears an animal skin slung diagonally across his chest and a diadem with prominent flower decoration on his head. His hair is pulled back, parted, and swept into a bun at the nape of his neck. Leaves or grape clusters stick out on either side of his head. An L-shaped attachment juts out from the back. The patina is dark brown with areas of light brown.

Three of these ornaments would have been attached to the top of a tripod stand; a vessel would then have been placed over them and held up by the attachment behind the bust (2).

NOTES:

1. Compare I. Manfrini-Aragno, Bacchus dans les bronzes hellénistiques et romains: Les artisans et leur répertoire (Lausanne, 1987) 108-13, figs. 177-210

2. For a complete example, see L. Pirzio Biroli Stefanelli, ed., Il bronzo dei Romani: Arredo e suppellettile (Rome, 1990) 147 and 259-60, no. 17, figs. 98-99.


Lisa M. Anderson

Subjects and Contexts

  • Ancient Bronzes

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu