ARCHAIC PERIOD, CIRCA EARLY 5TH CENTURY B.C.

Details

A GREEK CARNELIAN SCARAB WITH AN ATHLETE HOLDING A DISCUS
ARCHAIC PERIOD, CIRCA EARLY 5TH CENTURY B.C.
3/4 in. (1.9 cm.) long

Provenance

Giorgio Sangiorgi (1886-1965), Rome, acquired and brought to Switzerland, late 1930s; thence by continuous descent to the current owner.

Special notice

This lot has been imported from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice.

Conditions of sale

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Lot Essay

The high scarab with carinated back is carved on the underside with the figure of a well-muscled youth throwing a discus, with both arms raised, one leg crossed behind the other, head angled down. The scene surrounded by a hatched border. For the discus thrower as a subject on early Greek gems cf. J. Boardman, Archaic Greek Gems, London, 1968, p. 82, no. 215, pl. XIV; and for the popularity of the discobolos on classical gems in general, in various poses, both active and static cf. G. Lippold, Gemmen und kameen des Altertums und der Neuzeit, Stuttgart, 1922, pl. LV.

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