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Historic Images of the Greek Bronze Age: The Reproductions of E. Gilliéron and Son

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Program Information

Historic Images of the Greek Bronze Age: The Reproductions of E. Gilliéron and Son

Program information

Seán Hemingway, curator, Department of Greek and Roman Art, discusses early twentieth-century reproductions of works from Sir Arthur Evans's historic excavations of Minoan Crete and Heinrich Schliemann's Mycenaean Greece.

This lecture was recorded on September 9, 2011, in conjunction with the exhibition Historic Images of the Greek Bronze Age: The Reproductions of E. Gilliéron & Son, on view May 17, 2011, through June 17, 2012.

Eros, God of Love

Eros, God of Love
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Silver bust of Serapis

Period:
Mid-Imperial
Date:
2nd century A.D.
Culture:
Roman
Medium:
Silver
Dimensions:
6 1/8 x 3 3/4 in. (15.6 x 9.5 cm)
Classification:
Gold and Silver
Credit Line:
Gift of Jan Mitchell and sons, 1991
Accession Number:
1991.127

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 169

  • Description

    By the second century A.D., Serapis had become one of the most popular deities in the Roman Empire. Many images of the god took the form of portable busts, suitable for dedication or for private worship. Silver busts of Serapis are mentioned in an inscription found in Rome, but this is apparently the only extant example. The modius (grain basket) always shown on the god’s head is now missing.

  • Provenance

    Said to be from Egypt (Galerie Georges Petit, 1925, p. 10, lot 7)

    Until 1925, collection of Joseph Durighiello; June 20, 1925, purchased by A. De Nanteuil from Galerie Georges Petit, Paris; 1925-1966, collection of A. De Nanteuil; June 13, 1966, purchased by Jan Mitchell from Sotheby's, London; 1966-1991, collection of Jan Mitchell, New York; acquired in April 1991, gift of Jan Mitchell and sons, New York.

  • References

    Galerie Georges Petit, Paris. Collection Joseph Durighiello. Catalogues des Objets d’art. Antiques Egyptiens, Grecs, Romains et autres, June 20, 1925, lot 7, pl. ix.

    Catalogue of Highly Important Egyptian, Western Asiatic, Greek, Etruscan and Roman Antiquities, Sotheby's, London, June 13, 1966, lot 129, ill.

    Hornbostel, W. 1973. Sarapis: Studien zur Überlieferungsgeschichte, den Erscheinungsformen und Wandlungen der Gestalt eines Gottes. Leiden: Brill, p. 190, n. 5.

    Oliver, A., Jr. 1977. Silver for the Gods: 800 Years of Greek and Roman Silver. Toledo, Ohio: The Toledo Museum of Art, p. 159, no. 105.

    The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1991. Annual Report, 1990-1991. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, p. 32.

    Milleker, E. 1991. "Recent Acquisitions: A Selection, 1990-1991." MMA Bulletin, n.s., 49(2): 9, ill.

    Picón, C.A. et al. 2007. Art of the Classical World in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, p. 495, no. 458, ill. p. 393.

  • See also
    What
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    In the Museum
    Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
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