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Lot 131

A small Roman bronze bust of Alexander Cosmocrator

28 November 2019, 10:30 GMT
London, New Bond Street

£800 - £1,200

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A small Roman bronze bust of Alexander Cosmocrator
Circa 2nd Century A.D.
Wearing only a chlamys pinned at his left shoulder, his long wavy hair surmounted by a disc with pointed star, 4.5cm high

Footnotes

Provenance:
Mr A. collection, Paris, acquired prior to 1996.

Published:
F. Antonovich, Les Métamorphoses Divines d'Alexandre, Paris, 1996, p. 279.

The stellar headdress calls to mind the Vergina star, the symbol of Macedonian royalty. It could also refer to Alexander being of divine origin, or imply his dominion over the Cosmos. Cf. a terracotta fragment from a plastic vase depicting Alexander wearing a headdress formed of a lunar crescent supporting a disc with a pointed star, flanked by smaller discs with pointed stars, at the Musée de la Cinquantenaire, Brussels, acc. no. A1938.

Additional information

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