Norbert Franken

Summary: From Alexandria to Actium. On the evidence of late Hellenistic bronze groups of slave and donkey. By looking at the bronze statuettes of two donkeys laden with baskets as well as the statuette of a Negro slave in a stooping posture which evidently once had a heavy burden behind it, the author reconstructs the ideal image of a small-scale bronze group, formerly used as a luxurious table-top device, in the form of a slave trying to persuade a stubborn donkey to move on. For stylistic reasons, the bronzes discussed here can be assigned to the late Hellenistic art of Egypt and be dated in the 2nd and 1st century BC.

Summary: Based on earlier preliminary work, the author treats in the present paper a number of late Roman bronze lamps with mythological figure decoration, which were previously considered lost. The small number of surviving examples does not allow a complete overview of the original range of themes of this material genre. Together with comparable groups of figures on other bronze devices, such as chariots and folding tables, the lamps discussed here demonstrate a continuing interest in traditional myth imagery. Thus, the figuratively decorated lamp handles prove to be speaking testimonies for the world of thought of the elites of the 3rd and 4th century AD, some of whom still adhered to the old faith for a long time.

Summary: Using the example of a smaller number of allegedly late Hellenistic bronze statuettes of fighting pygmies, the author demonstrates that the method of group formation that leads to the goal of many types of ancient monuments also works with fakes or post-antique bronzes. For four isolated statuettes in museums in London, Lyon, Mannheim and Princeton as well as a figure on the art market, a close stylistic relationship with three compositions of pygmies fighting against one another or against a lizard can be found formerly in Berlin (loss of war), Paris and Vienna. Even if the figures originate from the model of Hellenistic-Roman dwarf statuettes, they are all clearly recognizable as post-antique creations in the critical overview due to their inorganic body shapes and their unanticipated surface design.

Summary: The starting point of the investigation is a Hellenistic bronze statuette of Dionysus in the Roman-Germanic Museum in Cologne. To locate the workshop of the statuette allegedly found in Syria or Lebanon, the author examines the unusual technique of attaching the arms below the shoulders.

Summary: The investigation focuses on two little-known and only partially preserved bronze statuettes from Egypt, which apparently represent young men in ordinary working clothes. // With the help of new photographs with detailed side and rear views, the author succeeds in a new interpretation of a bronze statuette of a young man that is now in a private collection in the United States. Although the figure was correctly attributed to a bronze workshop in Roman Egypt in the auction catalog of the Julien Gréau collection, this attribution seemed to have been forgotten recently. Even if there are no comparable examples among the preserved bronze statuettes, a number of iconographically related terracottas can be cited, which speak for an origin of the bronze from Hellenistic-Roman Egypt and for an identification of the depicted as a servant in the cult of Harpocrates. // The second part of this article deals with a statuette torso, presumably acquired in Lower Egypt, now in the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, which can be reconstructed as a figure of a standing African slave wearing the exomis.

Summary: Based on a photo taken in Vienna in 1893, which shows a Roman bronze statuette in a private collection at the time, the author identifies the 21 cm high figure, published as "Abraxas", as the remnants of a so-called tintinnabulum. A striding man, naked except for a cloak tied around the waist, with the purse of Mercury in his right hand and a flat bowl of unknown meaning in his left hand is depicted. On the head it shows the typical comb and the flaps of skin of a rooster that fall on the neck and chest. The presumed purpose is confirmed not only by the eyelets or holes under the feet and in the tips of the coat but also by an antique drawing from the 17th century in Rome, which undoubtedly shows the same figure in a more complete state of preservation. At an unspecified point in time between the 17th and late 19th centuries, the chains and bells that were initially still intact were removed and the enormous phallus that is typical of many Roman tintinnabula was removed. For the bronze figure, which can no longer be detected today, a profound reworking to adapt it to personal preferences or contemporary tastes can be demonstrated.

Summary: There were several technical reasons for the opening in the back of the Hellenistic-Roman bronze statuettes examined here. Firstly, the cut-out allowed the casting core to be removed. In addition, as with bust weights, in some statuettes, the perforation was used to fill the inside completely or partially with lead for static reasons, or they served to attach a fastening peg. The actual purpose, however, was that of a so-called core bearing, i. e. a temporary connection between the cast core and the cast mantle, which, similar to the core holders, prevented the core from shifting when the wax melted out. The apertures also allowed ventilation of the casting core, thus preventing increased internal pressure and possible bursting of the mould. The widespread interpretation as a device for repair patches, however, should be regarded as wrong, for
the most part.

Summary: In 1892 Wilhelm von Bode, director of the Skulpturenabteilung und Gemäldesammlung of the Berlin Museums, bought in Rome a bronze fitting with enamel decoration. It was named in a purchase report as the ‘part of a buckle or something similar’, but the report contained no illustration. Since the end of WW II the object has been lost. It is now identified based on an old photograph as the hinge mount of an early medieval Irish Reliquary. In this paper the artefact is discussed within the context of other early medieval ecclesiastical objects found in Italy.

Summary: Starting from a lost 16.5 cm high Roman bronze statuette from Brigetio (Hungary), which towards the end of the 19th century was in the possession of the Viennese tea dealer and art collector Franz Trau sen. the author examines the iconography of the goddess Nemesis and above all the unusual form of the piece-cast technique for a bare leg that once protruded from the robe, with which the winged goddess of retribution stepped on the head of an offender lying on the floor in front of her.

Summary: For a formerly restored, but in the core probably Roman-imperial bronze statuette of a standing god (Jupiter or Neptune) in the Antikensammlung of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin the author postulates the origin from a private collection of ancient and postclassical small bronzes which was resolved at the turn of the 19th to the 20th century. By means of historical photographs, he succeeds in comparing the baroque pedestal, which is no longer associated with the figure, with the corresponding pedestal of a Roman bronze statuette of a genius or city god presumably coming from the Borghese collection. The present essay thus sheds light on the previously untapped possibilities for the reconstruction of ancient Roman collections of antiquities through the systematic screening and evaluation of early photographs.

Summary: Of not insignificant importance is the correct determination of the original function of archaeological small finds. Based on a previously unexplained bronze device from Alexandria, the author deals with the importance of Hellenistic war elephants.

Summary: The author compares an incomplete bronze statuette in Baltimore with a bronze figure of a slave in Athens and succeeds in demonstrating that both sculptures represent Roman porters, differing from one another only in minor details. The statuettes belong to a Ptolemaic-Hellenistic iconographic tradition and must have been made in Egypt in the 1st century ad. In their practical function as items of luxury decor, they probably represented house slaves carrying furniture or shopping. It is striking that they exhibit none of the tendency to exaggerated ugliness, sometimes combined with flagrant nudity, which often invited the mirth and derision of the viewer in Antiquity. According to contemporary superstition, however, the discernible hunchback on both figures would appear to have given them power against the ‘evil eye’. While the better preserved bronze in Athens may have served as a candle holder or lamp, the small receptacles on the back may also have been intended to hold small quantities of food, spices, incense or the like. If so, the statuettes in Athens and Baltimore could be seen as a distinct group of ‘miniature dumb waiters’.

Zusammenfassung: Durch den Vergleich einer unvollständig erhaltenen und darum bis zuletzt widersprüchlich beurteilten Bronzestatuette eines buckligen Mannes in gegürteter Tunika mit einer unveröffentlichten Sklavenstatuette in Athen gelingt dem Verfasser der Nachweis zweier motivisch ähnlicher Darstellungen römischer Lastenträger (lat. baiuli). Für die in ptolemäisch-hellenistischer Bildtradition stehenden Bronzen aus Ägypten wird eine Entstehung im 1. Jh. n. Chr. vorgeschlagen. Als luxuriöse Ausstattungsstücke stellten die Figuren wohl mit dem Transport von Möbeln oder Einkäufen beschäftigte Haussklaven dar. Da sich die mitgeführten Behältnisse rein praktisch zur Aufnahme von Räucherwerk, Gewürzen o. ä. anboten, dienten die Bronzestatuetten vermutlich als eine Art ‚Stumme Diener en miniature’.

Summary: The RGK’s collections include a remarkable Roman bronze statuette of Diana, which was found during the First World War in the then German region of Lorraine near Mulcey, Dept. Moselle (F). The article gives a detailed account of how the find came to the RGK. The very well-preserved statuette is unique because only its attributes (the quiver, bow and arrows) are consistent with Diana, whilst her body, garment and hairstyle are reminiscent of a particular type of statue depicting the Egyptian Goddess Isis. The statuette was probably made in the later 2nd or the first half of the 3rd century AD in Gaul. The associated finds discovered with the statuette have since been lost, but probably in-cluded its stand and the animal figures that usually accompany Diana. These may suggest that the object was part of a deposit hidden along the road between Metz and Strasbourg in an area that was densely populated during the Roman period.

Summary: Through comparisons with Roman mosaics and painted glass vessels, the author reaches a new interpretation of the 13 cm high Roman bronze statuette of a man with a belted tunic in the Romano-Germanic Museum of the City of Cologne. Remarkably, the length falling over the knees and the unusually wide cut differ from the form of the tunic customary for slaves or craftsmen. Since such a form of the tunic is so far known mainly for representations of referees in the gladiatorial fight, the author would like to suggest with all caution also for the bronze from Cologne a corresponding interpretation.

Summary: Fate of slaves. Three iconographic chapters on Hellenistic and Roman small bronzes. The article deals in three chapters with largely unknown aspects of suspected slave depictions in Hellenistic-Roman bronze art, focusing on the punishment and stigmatization of escaped or otherwise criminalized slaves.

Summary: This article shows how even small fragments of large-format bronze statues that have been already published some time ago can provide new insights. This is demonstrated by two bronze fragments from Qaryat al-Faw (Saudi Arabia) and Palmyra (Syria). The arrangement of the cuirass leather straps ( pteryges) indicates that the fragments belonged to equestrian statues. This observation can be supported by analogies of bronze equestrian statues from the central Greek-Roman areas of the Mediterranean. The two examples from Syria and Saudi Arabia show that the local Arab rulers in antiquity closely followed Greek-Roman models to document their claim to power.

Summary: The Tyche of Carthage. New observations on figurative handles of late Roman bronze lamps. The author defines two at first glance crude and inconspicuous pieces of equipment in the form of a woman standing in a framed aedicula found near El Meridj (Algeria) and Atlit (Israel) as the isolated preserved figurative handles of two late Roman bronze lamps. With the help of representations on ancient coins succeeds the naming of the goddess with foliage wreath in the hair and twigs in the hands as the city goddess of Carthage. The theme and distribution of the bronzes dating back to the 4th century AD seem to suggest the production in a workshop of Roman North Africa. A creation in Egypt, however, the author would like to exclude, since there is no apparent relationship to the typical style of ‘Coptic’ bronze work. A third lamp handle in Rome differs in style and iconography and is likely to be attributed to a local workshop. At the end of the investigation, the author proposes a new interpretation for a hitherto interpreted as a representation of Venus and Mars lamp handle in the Cabinet des Médailles in Paris and interprets the converging and harmonious connected in the handshake figures as the personifications of Carthage and Rome.

Summary: In this article, the author takes up again the question of the function of a special material group of supposedly late antique steelyard weights, which was first addressed in his doctoral thesis. According to current knowledge, at least seven examples in German, French and Dutch museums can be attributed to what he calls the 'Kassel group'. With a certain degree of variation, they depict, in a highly stylised manner, apparently female beings consisting only of head and torso. An eyelet cast in one piece on the top of the head and sometimes preserved lead remains in the open back of the body occasionally led to an interpretation as barrel weights in the past. In addition to the concavely hollowed, open back, one or two holes in the body indicate that the appliqués were once riveted onto the strongly convex body of a vessel or implement. The actual use of these appliqués, some of which are patinated like archaeological finds from the ground, and their much later date of origin can now be elucidated by comparing them with eternal-light pendants of the 17th and early 18th centuries, which always have three such appliqués, with the help of which they are suspended in such a way that an elaborately designed chain is connected to the eyelets at the top of each. The perpetual light lamps, some of which can be dated more precisely on the basis of manufacturer's marks, can be dated to the 17th and early 18th centuries. They were based on an older tradition and belonged in particular to the furnishings of Catholic, and more rarely also Protestant (and Orthodox?) churches. Nuremberg was one of the manufacturing centres for these lighting devices, which were probably made of brass.

Zusammenfassung: In diesem Beitrag greift der Verfasser die erstmals in seiner Doktorarbeit behandelte Frage nach der Funktion einer besonderen Materialgruppe vermeintlich spätantiker Laufgewichte wieder auf. Der von ihm so genannten ‚Gruppe Kassel’ lassen sich nach heutiger Kenntnis wenigstens sieben Beispiele in deutschen, französischen und niederländischen Museen zuweisen. Mit einer gewissen Variationsbreite stellen sie in starker Stilisierungoffenbar weibliche, nur aus Kopf und Rumpf bestehende Wesen dar. Eine in einem Stück mitgegossene Öse auf dem Oberkopf und mitunter erhaltene Bleireste in der offenen Rückseite des Körpers führten früher gelegentlich zu einer Deutung als Laufgewichte. Neben der konkav ausgehöhlten, offenen Rückseite sprechen aber auch ein oder zwei Durchbohrungen des Körpers für ein ehemaliges Aufnieten der Appliken auf dem stark gebauchten, also konvex ausschwingenden Körper eines Gefäßes bzw. Gerätes. Die tatsächliche Verwendung dieser zum Teil wie archäologische Bodenfunde patinierten Appliken und ihre viel spätere Entstehungszeit erhellt nun der Vergleich mit Ewiglicht-Ampeln des 17. und frühen 18. Jahrhunderts, welche stets drei solcher Appliken aufweisen, mit deren Hilfe sie in der Art und Weise aufgehängt sind, dass mit den Ösen am Oberkopf jeweils eine aufwendig gestaltete Kette verbunden ist. Die zum Teil anhand von Herstellermarken genauer datierbaren Ewiglicht-Ampeln, die basierend auf älterer Tradition insbesondere zur Ausstattung katholischer, seltener auch evangelischer (und orthodoxer?) Kirchen gehörten, lassen sich in das 17. und frühe 18. Jahrhundert datieren. Ein Herstellungszentrum dieser wohl aus Messing bestehenden Beleuchtungsgeräte war unter anderem Nürnberg.

Zusammenfassung: Antiken Schriftquellen zufolge war Epigonos von Pergamon der führende pergamenische Bildhauer des späten 3. Jahrhunderts v. Chr. Bezeugt ist er als Bronzegießer und möglicherweise auch als Steinbildhauer. Er arbeitete im Auftrag von König Attalos I. und vielleicht auch noch für Eumenes I. Zu seinen bis in die römische Kaiserzeit hoch geschätzten Bildwerken gehörte auch die Statue eines Tubicen (Trompeters). Der Verfasser behandelt hier erstmals ausführlich eine von ihm bereits vor längerem als Tubicen gedeutete Kleinbronze. Die ohne den zugehörigen antiken Sockel 21 cm hohe Figur wurde um 1830 bei Montdidier (Somme) in Nordfrankreich gefunden und 1907 zusammen mit einer etwas größeren, ebenso römischen Solstatuette gleicher Provenienz aus Privatbesitz für den Louvre erworben. Die Figur folgt einem hellenistischen Vorbild mit ausgeprägter Mehransichtigkeit und könnte eine kleinformatige frühkaiserzeitliche Wiederholung des 'Tubicen' des Epigonos von Pergamon sein, der wahrscheinlich zur Gallierschlacht des Großen Attalischen Weihgeschenks gehörte.

Summary: Epigonos of Pergamon's tubicen: new thoughts on a Hellenistic masterpiece. – According to ancient sources, Epigonos of Pergamon was the most influent Pergamenian sculptor of the late 3rd c. BC. He was known as a sculptor working with bronze, and probably also with stone. He worked for king Attalos I, and perhaps also for Eumenes II. Among his works, which were still valued in Imperial times, was the statue of a tubicen (a trumpet player). The a. presents here for the frst time in details a small bronze from the early Imperial period that he identifed as a tubicen. This bronze, discovered at Montdidier (Somme) in 1830 and bought by the Louvre, was inspired from a Hellenistic model that could be looked at from different angles. It could correspond to a small‑size replica of Epigonos of Pergamon’s tubicen, which probably belonged to the Great Attalid ex‑voto’s battle scene against the Gauls (Galatomachia).

Summary: About the size of a dwarf: on the meaning of an ‘Alexandrian’ bronze head in Clermont-Ferrand – This bronze head (h. 11.2 cm) was discovered by chance near Bas‑et‑Lezat (Dép. Puy‑de‑Dôme/F) in the summer of 1970, and has long been in the musée Bargoin, Clermont‑Ferrand. Since its discovery, it has been considered a product of ‘Alexandrian’ art. However, only the original model came from Hellenized Egypt, while the head itself was most likely made in Italy or Gaul. By comparison with the bronze statuette of a dancing phallic dwarf preserved in Boston and a somewhat smaller comparative piece from the Italian excavations at Bakchias (Fayum), the a. shows that musée Bargoin’s negroid head belonged to the almost life‑size statue of a dwarf. This result is of importance as the figure, reconstructed to an original height of approx. 50 cm, thus represents by far the largest known depiction of a dwarf in ancient art. Judging from the style, it is datable to the late 1st century BC or the early 1st century AD.

Summary: The focus of this study are two late Hellenistic bronze statuettes of black slaves, one in the Landesmuseum Württemberg in Stuttgart (Germany) and the other in the Millesgården art museum in Lidingö near Stockholm (Sweden). Based on a floor mosaic in the baths of the Casa del Menandro in Pompeii, the author proposes a new interpretation for these small bronzes, previously thought to be fishermen. They may in fact be bath slaves, holding two askoi. The now-missing vessels were obviously fashioned separately, probably from silver or bronze sheet metal. One can imagine that, in real life, the vessels may have held oil for the personal grooming of bathers. It is also possible, however, that they were filled with water. In that case, the statuettes may represent the slaves in Hellenistic saunas whose job it was – like the perfusores
(steam dousers) in Roman public baths – to pour water over heated stones.

Zusammenfassung: Im Mittelpunkt der Untersuchung stehen zwei späthellenistische Bronzestatuetten schwarzer Sklaven. Mit Hinweis auf ein Mosaik in Pompeji schlägt der Verfasser für die früher als Athleten (Weitspringer) oder Fischer gedeuteten Figuren eine neue Deutung als Bädersklaven mit zwei Askoi in den Händen vor. Die heute verlorenen Gefäßkörper waren separat gefertigt und bestanden wohl aus Silber- oder Bronzeblech. Man könnte sich vorstellen, dass die Gefäße im realen Leben zur Pflege der Badbesucher bestimmtes Öl enthielten. Vielleicht waren die Askoi aber auch stattdessen mit Wasser gefüllt. In diesem Fall verkörperten die Kleinbronzen wohl jene Sklaven, die – ähnlich den für römische Thermen überlieferten Perfusores (Dampfaufgießer) – die Aufgabe hatten, im hellenistischen Dampfbad Wasser auf erhitzte Steine zu gießen.

Summary: Based on a Roman bust appliqué of the goddess Roma in the Museum of Fine Arts Budapest, the author examines the figural decoration of monumental bronze horses. In view of the close typological similarities with related bust appliqués from Italy and North Africa, it can be demonstrated that the auxiliary negatives required for casting the statues obviously also 'migrated' over great distances with the moulds or models of the sculptural decoration, which in the case of the Rome busts was cast separately and then applied, whereby the observable differences in quality and simplifications indicate a widespread practice of constantly repeated moulding of older models. Even without the direct influence of the imperial house, it is possible that the usual working methods of Roman bronze casters alone ensured that the image programme of selected gods and personifications originally developed in Rome was disseminated within the Imperium Romanum. Finally, the custom of removing the bust appliqués of destroyed (or still existing) horse statues in order to use them as secondary weights for Roman or Late Antique quick scales, which was apparently practised much more frequently than previously assumed, will be examined in more detail.

Zusammenfassung: Ausgehend von einer römischen Büstenapplik der Göttin Roma im Museum der Bildenden Künste Budapest untersucht der Verf. den figürlichen Dekor monumentaler Bronzepferde. Angesichts enger typologischer Übereinstimmungen mit verwandten Büstenappliken aus Italien und Nordafrika lässt sich nachweisen, dass mit den zum Guss der Statuen benötigten Hilfsnegativen offensichtlich auch die Formen oder Modelle des im Falle der Romabüsten separat gegossenen und dann applizierten Bildschmucks über große Distanzen hinweg ‚wanderten’, wobei die zu beobachtenden Qualitätsunterschiede und Vereinfachungen auf eine verbreitete Praxis des stetig wiederholten Abformens älterer Vorlagen hindeuten. Auch ohne direkte Einflussnahme des Kaiserhauses sorgte so möglicherweise allein schon die übliche Arbeitsweise römischer Bronzegießer für eine Verbreitung des ursprünglich in Rom entwickelten Bildprogramms aus ausgewählten Göttern und Personifikationen innerhalb des Imperium Romanum. Genauer untersucht wird schließlich der offenbar viel häufiger als bisher vermutet praktizierte Brauch, die Büstenappliken zerstörter (oder auch weiter bestehender) Pferdestatuen abzulösen, um sie einer sekundären Verwendung als Laufgewichte römischer oder spätantiker Schnellwaagen zuzuführen.

Summary:  In a special storeroom of the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, the author stumbled upon a previously unpublished tripod leg of considerable art-historical importance among ancient bronzes once held in Berlin. The author also discovered a previously unknown sketch of this piece in the archives of the Collection of Classical Antiquities (Antikensammlung) in Berlin. According to a diary entry, the tripod leg was found in 1912 not far from the so-called Rhoicos Altar in the Heraion of Samos. The front of the massive, cast tripod leg, standing on a lion’s paw, is engraved with images of different animals and hybrid creatures. Among very rare archaic tripod cauldrons with figurative decoration, it is the best-preserved specimen. No other example of the combination of legs cast as a single piece and engraving is known. Stylistic parallels suggest that it was produced in a workshop in western Asia Minor or the Ionian islands, potentially Samos or Miletos, around the middle of the 6th century B.C. Besides the interpretation that the piece was a votive offering, comparison to other
pieces suggest that it may have been used as a ritual object.

Zusammenfassung: In einem Spezialdepot des Museums der Bildenden Künste A. S. Puschkin in Moskau stieß der Verfasser im September 2010 gänzlich unerwartet auf ein archaisches Dreifußbein von erheblicher kunsthistorischer Bedeutung. Gründliche Archivstudien führten ihn anschließend zu einer ebenso unbekannten Zeichnung in der Graphothek der Berliner Antikensammlung. Ulrich Gehrig ist der freundliche Hinweis auf eine Notiz im Tagebuch der älteren Samos-Grabung zu verdanken, nach der das Dreifußbein am 24. Mai 1912 bei den Ausgrabungen der Königlichen Museen zu Berlin im Heraion von Samos gefunden wurde. Vermutlich aufgrund der durch den Ersten Weltkrieg bedingten zehnjährigen Unterbrechung der Grabungstätigkeit unterblieb seine Veröffentlichung. Zunächst befand sich das bei der Auffindung noch 44 cm hohe, heute in zwei Fragmente zerbrochene und nur 39,8 cm messende Bein im Antiquarium der Königlichen Museen (heute: Antikensammlung – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin Inv. Sa. 130 Br). Nach Ende des Zweiten Weltkriegs gelangte es zusammen mit vielen anderen in die Sowjetunion verlagerten Museumsbeständen nach Moskau. Das voll gegossene, auf einer plastischen Raubtierpfote stehende und mit gravierten Bildern von Tieren und Mischwesen in untereinander angeordneten Feldern verzierte Dreifußbein war ursprünglich fast vollständig erhalten. Unter den außerordentlich seltenen archaischen Dreifußkesseln mit figürlichem Dekor ist es das am besten erhaltene Beispiel. Für die Kombination von voll gegossenen Beinen und graviertem Dekor ist bisher kein zweites Beispiel bekannt. Stilistische Vergleiche mit verwandten Darstellungen der frühgriechischen Flächenkunst legen eine Entstehung des Dreifußkessels in einer westkleinasiatisch- bzw. inselionischen Werkstatt und eine Datierung in das zweite Viertel des 6. Jahrhunderts v. Chr. nahe.

Summary: Following a general introduction to the subject of forgeries of ancient bronze statuettes, the author discusses two groups of pseudo-antique bronzes, which give the appearance of archaeological finds through deliberate damage. The statuettes of the first group are smaller copies of the well-known bronze statues of the National Museum in Naples. The second group, however, contains seemingly broken bronze heads, which can be determined as also reduced copies of Roman marble statues.

Summary: In the autumn of 2010, the author found a long-lost Egyptian bronze relief depicting the goddess Mut in a storeroom of the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. According to the diary, it was found on 4. 10. 1904 during the excavations at the archaic Athena temple of Miletus. With the inclusion of a stylistically related parallel from Saqqara North with the image of the enthroned Amun and a slightly earlier fragment of unknown origin with the representation of a female guard deity are here for the first time coherently described the technical characteristics of a largely unknown group of materials. Only recently, the material was extended to five copies by two bronze reliefs in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, a fragmented plate depicting Isis lactans and a plate depicting an unknown goddess with a knife. After the author initially believed that the bronze reliefs could have been part of the decorative picture of precious Egyptian wooden furniture, the last known relief from the cachette of Karnak showed the way to a new technical explanation. Thereafter, the reliefs can only have served as male moulds for the production of gold or silver sheets (with inserts of different colored glass or enamel). Accordingly, the dedicators of the reliefs will not be pharaohs or high-ranking personalities of the 7th century BC. the reliefs should rather be regarded as private votives by individuals of lesser prominence. In the context of the archaic Athena sanctuary of Milet the bronze relief of the Egyptian goddess Mut was undoubtedly the characteristic of a well traveled curiosity.- Zusammenfassung: Bei der Vorbereitung einer Bilddatenbank für die bis 1945 erworbenen Bronze-, Blei- und Eisenobjekte der Antikensammlung – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin fand der Verfasser im Herbst 2010 im Magazin des Ägyptischen Museums ein lange verschollenes ägyptisches Bronzerelief mit der Darstellung der Göttin Mut. Nach Ausweis des Tagebuchs wurde es am 4. 10. 1904 bei den Grabungen am archaischen Athena-Tempel von Milet gefunden. Unter Einbeziehung einer stilistisch verwandten Parallele aus Sakkara-Nord mit dem Bild des thronenden Amun und eines geringfügig früher entstandenen Relieffragments unbekannter Herkunft mit der Darstellung einer weiblichen Schutzgottheit werden hier erstmals zusammenhängend die technischen Merkmale einer weithin unbekannten Materialgruppe beschrieben. Erst jüngst ließ sich das Material durch zwei Bronzereliefs im Ägyptischen Museum Kairo, einer fragmentierten Platte mit der Darstellung der Isis lactans und einer Platte mit der Darstellung einer unbekannten Göttin mit Messer auf fünf Exemplare erweitern. Nachdem der Verfasser zunächst glaubte, die Bronzereliefs könnten zum Bildschmucks kostbarer ägyptischer Holzmöbel gehört haben, wies das zuletzt bekannt gewordene Relief aus der Cachette von Karnak den Weg zu einer neuen technischen Erklärung. Danach können die Reliefs nur als Patrizen zur Herstellung von Gold- oder Silberblechen (mit Einlagen aus verschiedenfarbigem Glas oder Email) gedient haben. Dementsprechend wird man als Stifter der Reliefs keine Pharaonen oder hochgestellte Persönlichkeiten des 7. Jahrhunderts v. Chr. vermuten. Eher dürften sie als private Votive von Einzelpersonen geringerer Prominenz anzusehen sein. Im Kontext des archaischen Athena-Heiligtums von Milet war dem Bronzerelief der ägyptischen Göttin Mut aber zweifellos das Merkmal eines weit gereisten Kuriosums zueigen.

Summary: Over the past six years, the author worked on more than 8,200 of the approximately 10,000 brass, lead and iron objects in the Antikensammlung of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (stocks and losses) preparing its presentation in the form of an image database. In at least 250 cases, previously unknown information on previous owners and on provenances could be supplemented and numerous comments on the former function could be added. In addition, the recent research revealed a host of other new findings: For example, many lost, damaged or destroyed objects could be made available for the first time using previously unassigned drawings or photos. Some of the bronzes believed to be lost could at least be found among the hitherto unidentified fragments. All in all, several hundred of the objects which had become disordered by the turmoil of the post-war period and were only reunited at the Altes Museum since 1995 could be assigned to their original inventory number by a thorough comparison with the inventories. Thanks to the concession of the Russian side, two trips to a special storeroom of the State Museum of Fine Arts A. S. Pushkin in Moscow were extremely effective, and to this day the whereabouts of more than 700 Berlin bronze and iron objects and related fragments could be clarified. Some previously missing bronzes were found in the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. The author illustrates the results of his work using selected bronzes from Cypriot sites or from suspected Cypriot workshops.- Zusammenfassung: In den vergangenen sechs Jahren hat der Verfasser über 8200 von insgesamt rund 10000 Bronze-, Blei- und Eisenobjekten der Antikensammlung der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin (Bestände und Verluste) für die Präsentation in Form einer Bilddatenbank neu erschlossen. Dabei konnten in wenigstens 250 Fällen bisher unbekannte Angaben zu Vorbesitzern und zu einzelnen Fundorten ergänzt sowie zahlreiche Bemerkungen zur ehemaligen Funktion nachgetragen werden. Darüber hinaus ergab sich durch die jüngsten Recherchen eine Vielzahl weiterer neuer Erkenntnisse: So konnten viele verschollene, beschädigte oder zerstörte Objekte mit Hilfe vorher nicht zuweisbarer Zeichnungen oder Fotos zum ersten Mal seit langem wieder im Bild verfügbar gemacht werden. Von manchen verloren geglaubten Bronzen ließen sich unter den bis dahin unidentifizierten Fragmenten wenigstens noch zugehörige Teile finden. Insgesamt konnten so – im Anschluß an entsprechende Bemühungen früherer Bearbeiter – nochmals mehrere Hundert der durch die Wirren der Nachkriegszeit in Unordnung geratenen und erst seit 1995 im Alten Museum wiedervereinigten Objekte durch einen gründlichen Abgleich mit den Inventaren wieder ihrer ursprünglichen Inventarnummer zugeordnet werden. Überaus ergebnisreich waren dank des Entgegenkommens der russischen Seite ferner zwei Reisen in ein Spezialmagazin des Staatlichen Museums der Bildenden Künste A. S. Puschkin in Moskau, durch die sich bis zum heutigen Tage der Verbleib von mehr als 700 Berliner Bronze- und Eisenobjekten und zugehörigen Fragmenten klären ließ. Einige bisher fehlende Bronzen kamen unter anderem im Ägyptischen Museum und Papyrussammlung – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin zutage. Der Verfasser illustriert die Ergebnisse seiner Arbeit anhand ausgewählter Bronzen von zyprischen Fundorten oder aus mutmaßlich zyprischen Werkstätten.

Summary: A bronze boy's head from the holdings of the Antikensammlung - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin forms the subject of the present study. Long regarded as a Greek original of the Severe Style, the head has been considered a classicist work of the Roman period for a little more than thirty years. In addition to the changes in its historical classification in the course of more than one hundred years of archaeological art studies, the question of its origin will be examined here. The collection history of the hitherto provenanceless head proves to be extremely interesting and complex. Following the preliminary work of Norbert Franken, who traces the history of the head back to the year 1801, Astrid Dostert succeeds in proving that the bronze, which was supplemented as a female bust at the time, was once part of the important collection of antique sculptures owned by the French cardinal, diplomat and scholar Melchior de Polignac (1661 - 1741), which was acquired by Frederick II for the Royal Prussian Art Collections one year after the collector's death. The study ends with a technical description of the condition and the interpretation of technical manufacturing features by the metal conservator of the Collection of Classical Antiquities, Uwe Peltz.

Zusammenfassung: Ein bronzener Knabenkopf aus dem Bestand der Antikensammlung – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin bildet den Gegenstand der vorliegenden Untersuchung. Der lange als ein griechisches Original des Strengen Stils angesehene Kopf gilt seit etwas mehr als dreißig Jahren als ein klassizistisches Werk römischer Zeit. Neben dem Wandel seiner historischen Einordnung im Verlauf von über einhundert Jahren archäologischer Kunstwissenschaft soll hier vor allem die Frage seiner Herkunft untersucht werden. Dabei erweist sich die Sammlungsgeschichte des bislang provenienzlosen Kopfes als überaus interessant und vielschichtig. Nach den Vorarbeiten von Norbert Franken, der die Geschichte des Kopfes bis in das Jahr 1801 zurückverfolgt, gelingt Astrid Dostert der Nachweis, daß die seinerzeit als Frauenbüste ergänzte Bronze einst Teil der bedeutenden Sammlung antiker Skulpturen aus dem Besitz des französischen Kardinals, Diplomaten und Gelehrten Melchior de Polignac (1661 – 1741) war, die ein Jahr nach dem Tode des Sammlers durch Friedrich II. für die königlich-preußischen Kunstsammlungen erworben wurde. Die Untersuchung endet mit einer technischen Zustandsbeschreibung und der Interpretation herstellungstechnischer Merkmale durch den Metallrestaurator der Antikensammlung Uwe Peltz.

Summary: This article deals with two bronze statuettes depicting seated men, one bearded, one without beard, stored in the Museo Nazionale del Palazzo di Venezia in Rome. It can be proved that the »filosofi overo consoli« have been found in 1664 in or near the Domus Valeriorum on the Caelius hill in Rome. First seized by the Commissario delle Antichità di Roma, Leonardo Agostini, they got into the collections of Giovan Pietro Bellori, then Camillo Massimo, later the Odescalchi family and finally into the Museo Kircheriano in the Collegio Romano. In 1762 J. J. Winckelmann studied at least the bearded one and interpreted it convincingly as the depiction of a philosopher. About 250 years later our better knowledge of Roman bronze furniture allows us to determine their primary function as crowns of folding tables with three or four legs. In the same complex have been found two statuettes of griffins which served as well as table crowns; in 1698 they were brought as part of the collection of Bellori to Berlin. Late Roman bronze lamps with figural decoration are good parallels which allow us to date the statuettes of ›philosphers‹ into the 4th century A.D. Because of the exactly copied statue type the unbearded man (›philosopher B‹) can be identified as a depiction of the Attic poet of comedy, Menandros. Like the statuette of this poet also the statue type of the bearded ›philosopher A‹ whose name cannot be determined derives from a Greek original of the time around 300 B.C.

Zusammenfassung: Im Mittelpunkt der Untersuchung stehen zwei jeweils 11,6 bzw. 11,7 cm hohe Bronzestatuetten eines bärtigen und eines unbärtigen, sitzenden Mannes im Museo Nazionale del Palazzo di Venezia. Wie sich nachweisen läßt, wurden die zwei „filosofi overo consoli“ bereits 1664 in oder unweit der spätantiken Domus Valeriorum auf dem Caelius in Rom gefunden. Von dem damaligen Commissario delle Antichità di Roma, Leonardo Agostini, zunächst beschlagnahmt, gelangten sie über die römischen Sammlungen von Giovan Pietro Bellori, Camillo Massimo und der Familie Odescalchi in das Museo Kircheriano im Collegio Romano. Dort hat auch Johann Joachim Winckelmann vor 1762 wenigstens eine von ihnen (den Bärtigen) gesehen und mit überzeugenden Argumenten als Philosoph gedeutet. Fast 250 Jahre später ermöglicht die verbesserte Kenntnis römischer Bronzemöbel eine Bestimmung ihrer ursprünglichen Funktion als Bekrönungen eines drei- oder vierbeinigen Klapptischs. (Dieselbe Verwendung besaßen im übrigen auch zwei Greifenstatuetten aus demselben Fundkomplex, die 1698 mit der Sammlung Bellori nach Berlin gelangten.) Stilistische Vergleiche mit dem freiplastischen Figurenschmuck spätantiker Bronzelampen erlauben es, die zwei ‚Philosophen’-Statuetten ins 4. Jahrhundert n. Chr. zu datieren. Dank des genau übereinstimmenden Figurentypus ist es möglich, den Unbärtigen (‚Philosoph’ B) als den attischen Komödiendichter Menander zu identifizieren. Wie die Dichterstatue geht auch die Figur des weiterhin nicht benennbaren Bärtigen (‚Philosoph’ A) auf ein griechisches Original der Zeit um 300 v. Chr. zurück.

Riassunto:

L’indagine verte su due statuette bronzee (alte rispettivamente 11,6 e 11,7 cm), conservate nel Museo Nazionale del Palazzo di Venezia e raffiguranti due personaggi maschili seduti, uno barbuto, l’altro privo di barba. Come risulta possibile documentare, i due “filosofi overo consoli” furono rinvenuti già nel 1664 all’interno o nelle vicinanze della tardo-antica Domus Valeriorum sul Celio a Roma. Dopo essere state inizialmente requisite dall’allora Commissario delle Antichità di Roma, Leonardo Agostini, le statuette giunsero, attraverso le collezioni romane di Giovan Pietro Bellori, Camillo Massimo e della famiglia Odescalchi, nel Museo Kircheriano nel Collegio Romano. Qui anche Johann Joachim Winckelmann, prima del 1762, vide almeno una di esse, interpretandola con argomenti convincenti come un filosofo. Quasi duecentocinquanta anni più tardi, la migliore conoscenza dei mobili bronzei romani consente di definire la loro funzione originaria come coronamento di un tavolo pieghevole a tre o quattro gambe (il medesimo impiego avevano tra l’altro anche due statuette di grifi provenienti dallo stesso contesto, le quali giunsero nel 1698 con la collezione Bellori a Berlino). Confronti stilistici con la decorazione figurata a tutto tondo di lucerne bronzee tardo-antiche permettono di datare le due statuette di ‘filosofi’ al IV secolo d.C. In virtù della precisa corrispondenza tipologica della figura, è possibile individuare nell’uomo privo di barba (‘Filosofo’ B) il commediografo attico Menandro. Come la statua di quest’ultimo, anche la figura barbuta (‘Filosofo’ A), per adesso non ancora identificabile, si richiama a un originale greco del periodo intorno al 300 a.C.

Summary: The focus of the study is the only 4.5 cm high, but very high-quality bronze statuette of a crouching demon, which is since August 2006 back in the Berlin Antiquities Collection (Antikensammlung – SMB Inv 30830). The figure, supposedly from Cerveteri, probably originated in the late 6th century BC. It represents an Etruscan death demon, a topic not previously known under bronze statuettes. The figure was acquired in 1885 at the auction of the Gréau collection in Paris. Erroneously interpreted as Anubis, it first came to the Egyptian Department of the Berlin Museums, 1920 in the Antiquities Department. Lost since the Second World War, the author was able to find the figure in April 2006 in the storage rooms of the Egyptian Museum.-

Zusammenfassung: Im Mittelpunkt der Untersuchung steht die nur 4,5 cm hohe, jedoch sehr qualitätvolle Bronzestatuette eines hockenden Dämons, die sich seit August 2006 wieder in der Berliner Antikensammlung (Inv. 30830) befindet. Die wohl im späten 6. Jh. v. Chr. entstandene und angeblich aus Cerveteri stammende Figur stellt einen etruskischen Todesdämon dar, ein unter Bronzestatuetten bislang nicht bekanntes Thema. Die Figur wurde 1885 bei der Versteigerung der Sammlung Gréau in Paris erworben. Irrtümlich als Anubis gedeutet, kam sie zunächst in die Ägyptische Abteilung der Berliner Museen, 1920 in die Antikenabteilung. Seit dem Zweiten Weltkrieg verschollen, konnte der Autor sie im April 2006 im Magazin des Ägyptischen Museums wiederfinden.

Summary: The study focuses on three handles of late Roman bronze lamps in Duisburg, Málaga and Ostia, which represent the myth of 'Leda and the Swan'. The almost identical lamp handles differ only in details of the cold work, which speaks for the involvement of different craftsmen within one bronze workshop.

Summary: Based on three Roman bronze lamps in Carnuntum, Vienna and on the Austrian art market, the author examines the phenomenon of so-called picture-puzzles in the form of inverted pictures or reversible heads, which can furthermore be traced on Roman mosaics and in Hellenistic relief pottery and are therefore obviously part of an older tradition.

Summary: As a result of its more than 350-year history, the Collection of Classical Antiquities of the National Museums in Berlin possesses - despite some losses - a highly significant stock of Greek, Etruscan and Roman bronzes. As part of the "Friederichs Image Database" project funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), a first part of the bronze collection has undergone a thorough revision over the past three years. Based on the catalogue by Carl Friederichs (1831 - 1871) published in 1871, an image database comprising almost 3460 objects was created, the internet publication of which is scheduled for September 2007. The main tasks of the reporter consisted of a comprehensive digital photo documentation of the holdings, which had been reunited since 1995, the identification of apparently provenance-less objects and the assignment of historical photographs to the losses. The report provides exemplary testimony to a small section of this fruitful activity, namely the possibilities of reconstructing the history of the collection with the help of early antique drawings and engravings.

Zusammenfassung: Die Antikensammlung der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin besitzt als Ergebnis ihrer mehr als 350-jährigen Entstehungsgeschichte – trotz mancher Verluste – einen hoch bedeutenden Bestand griechischer, etruskischer und römischer Bronzen. Im Rahmen des von der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) geförderten Projekts „Bilddatenbank Friederichs“ hat in den vergangenen drei Jahren ein erster Teil der Bronzesammlung eine gründliche Revision erfahren. Auf der Grundlage des 1871 erschienenen Katalogs von Carl Friederichs (1831 – 1871) entstand eine knapp 3460 Objekte umfassende Bilddatenbank, deren Internetveröffentlichung für September 2007 vorgesehen ist. Die hauptsächlichen Aufgaben des Berichterstatters bestanden in einer umfassenden digitalen Fotodokumentation der seit 1995 wieder vereinigten Bestände, der Identifizierung scheinbar provenienzloser Objekte und der Zuordnung historischer Fotografien zu den Verlusten. Über einen kleinen Ausschnitt dieser ergebnisreichen Tätigkeit, nämlich die Möglichkeiten der Rekonstruktion von Sammlungsgeschichte mit Hilfe früher Antikenzeichnungen und Stichwerke, legt der Bericht exemplarisch Zeugnis ab.

Summary: A recent acquisition in the Museum August Kestner in Hanover serves as point of departure for the discussion of a group of four Roman bronze statuettes, naked youths with arms raised high above their heads. According to the evidence from a figured clay lamp in Tübingen, they must once have held round tablets supporting lamps. The group apparently owes its origins to the artistic predilections of Augustan classicism, inspired by Greek works of the Severe Style. Based on the few extant examples, the author traces the development of the group down to the Late Imperial period; details were simplified over time, and the type of head was occasionally modified.

Summary: With the help of a completely preserved bronze group in the Gabinetto segreto of the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, the author reconstructs several isolated Roman bronze statuettes of Mercury seated with broad legs as former components of tintinnabula in the form of the god riding on a ram.

Summary: The author deals with a group of remarkable bronze lamps, most of which are dated in the literature to the Roman Imperial period or even suspected of being forgeries. However, the lamps compiled and comprehensively studied here for the first time are connected to each other by significant formal elements and show such close typological similarities to late Etruscan bronze works of the third and second centuries B.C. that one can postulate for them with good reasons a corresponding artistic classification and an approximately simultaneous period of origin.

Summary: Through a detailed analysis of their iconographic features, but especially through a comparison with a figure on a Roman black-and-white mosaic from the Caelius in Rome that is completely consistent in terms of motif, the author succeeds in identifying two previously contradictorily interpreted bronzes, a presumed fragment of furniture or equipment in Berlin and a completely preserved statuette in Rome, as representing referees of athletic competitions.

Zusammenfassung: Durch eine detaillierte Analyse ihrer ikonographischen Merkmale, insbesondere aber durch den Vergleich mit einer motivisch vollkommen übereinstimmenden Figur auf einem römischen Schwarzweißmosaik vom Caelius in Rom, gelingt dem Verfasser die Identifizierung zweier bisher widersprüchlich interpretierter Bronzen, einem mutmaßlichen Möbel- oder Gerätfragment in Berlin und einer vollständig erhaltenen Statuette in Rom, als Darstellung von Schiedsrichtern athletischer Wettkämpfe.

Summary: In 1967, a lot of three bronze figures was stolen from the Museo Civico in Teramo (Abruzzi), where they had been discovered in 1907. The appeared briefly in the North American art market, but their present whereabouts are unknown. All three had served as tintinnabula, either in primary or secondary use, in the first century A.D.
The article focuses on the unusual iconography of one of the three figures, the statuette of a dancing man wearing an exomis and a mask concealing the upper part of his face. Men wearing such half-masks are almost exclusively to be found among Hellenistic terracottas; more than 40 representations are known to date. Production centres seem to have existed in Egypt, western Asia Minor and South Italy (Taranto, Capua), and perhaps elsewhere as well. Due to the scarcity of information concerning their circumstances of discovery, the statuettes can be dated only roughly to the second and first centuries B.C.
The central problem is the interpretation of these figures. As P. Ghiron-Bistagne had already remarked, the fact that several of them are wreathed indicates a festive context. Several recently discovered statuettes of musicians wearing half-masks point in the same direction, and in one case, a connection with the cult of Harpokrates has been established. But the diversity in the appearance of the figures and their widespread occurrence show that different possibilities should be taken into consideration.

Summary: In a concise catalogue, the author compiles a group of characteristic bronze devices. The bronzes, consisting of a suspension eye, an inscription plate and two leaping dolphins, have been considered components of military insignia since an earlier proposal. A comparison with recently published clay lamps from Pergamon and a complete bronze lamp found on the art market succeeds in proving that the bronzes originating from the east of the Roman Empire are indeed suspensions of bronze lamps. According to the testimony of three votive inscriptions, such lamps apparently played a prominent role in the cult of 'Theos Hypsistos'.

Summary: The subject of the study are three types and one special form of bronze bases. Although the vast majority of them come from historical collections in the city of Rome, there can be no doubt as to their authenticity. Even if the shape of the bases, most of which were probably created in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, at first glance resembles inscription panels of Roman portrait busts, they may have once served as the feet of monumental round altars or large vessels.

Summary: This essay deals with a type of Roman bronze statuette that has survived in four 'replicas' (Jerusalem, London, Stuttgart, Verona). It depicts a broad-legged seated man with foreign costume and physiognomy carrying loaves of bread in his lap. Comparison with a late antique ivory diptych in London leads the author to identify the figures as elephant riders. From a technical point of view, the examination of all known elephant statuettes yields further evidence for the earlier existence of bronze elephant-rider groups. A reconstruction drawing will give an idea of the appearance of such a group. The proposed identification is followed by a lengthy excursus on the iconography of the head type in the Hellenistic tradition, which does not allow a clear decision as to whether the sitter is Indian or North African. The determination of the finally examined thematic context is similarly problematic. Most indications speak for an addition as a war elephant with rider and 'tower', but reconstructions as a scene from the amphitheatre or as an excerpt from the Indian Triumph of Dionysus/Bacchus remain conceivable.

Project description: One of the most important bourgeois collections of antiquities in Europe in the late 17th and early 18th centuries was that of the Dutchman Jacob de Wilde (1645-1721) in Amsterdam. The importance of this collection, which was scattered to the four winds at an auction held almost 20 years after the collector's death, can mainly be understood on the basis of a catalog published in 1700. Entitled “Signa Antiqua E Museo Jacobi De Wilde Veterum Poetarum Carminibus Illustrata Et Per Mariam Filiam Aeri Inscripta”, the work contains 60 full-page copperplate engravings of selected works of art from antiquity and later periods. Around 50 figurative bronzes reliably labeled “Aes” predominate over just under 10 works of stone labeled “Marble”, including a pseudo-Egyptian Osiris mummy, a statuette of the enthroned Cybele, a votive relief for Men, an urn of ashes with a Latin inscription and four portrait busts from the Roman period. Among the bronzes, nine ancient Egyptian figures, a Greek mirror support from the Archaic period and several Etruscan-Italic and Roman Imperial statuettes can be distinguished. In addition to a German lamp support from the 16th century, more than 20 Italian bronzes from the Renaissance and Baroque periods stand out. /// The primary aim of the project is to determine the current location of the more significant ancient bronzes. For the ancient Egyptian and post-antique bronzes, on the other hand, such an undertaking can only succeed selectively, as these were often produced in large numbers, which makes it much more difficult to clearly identify the 'replicas' depicted as copper engravings. According to current knowledge, at least five of the ancient bronzes can be located in various Western European museums and in the French art trade. Relevant information from international scholars is always welcome. /// /// Projektbeschreibung: Zu den bedeutendsten bürgerlichen Antikensammlungen in Europa zählte im späten 17. und frühen 18. Jahrhundert jene des Niederländers Jacob de Wilde (1645–1721) in Amsterdam. Bei einer fast 20 Jahre nach dem Tode des Sammlers durchgeführten Auktion in alle Winde zerstreut ist die Bedeutung dieser Sammlung hauptsächlich anhand eines im Jahre 1700 erschienenen Katalogs zu erschließen. Unter dem Titel „Signa Antiqua E Museo Jacobi De Wilde Veterum Poetarum Carminibus Illustrata Et Per Mariam Filiam Aeri Inscripta“ enthält das Werk 60 ganzseitige Kupferstichtafeln mit ausgewählten Kunstwerken der Antike und späterer Epochen. Es überwiegen etwa 50 zuverlässig mit „Aes“ bezeichnete, figürliche Bronzen gegenüber knapp 10 als „Marmor“ gekennzeichneten Werken aus Stein, darunter eine pseudoägyptische Osirismumie, eine Statuette der thronenden Kybele, ein Weihrelief für Men, eine Aschenurne mit lateinischer Inschrift und vier Portraitbüsten römischer Zeit. Bei den Bronzen lassen sich neun altägyptische Figuren, eine griechische Spiegelstütze archaischer Zeit sowie mehrere etruskisch-italische und römisch-kaiserzeitliche Statuetten unterscheiden. Neben einem deutschen Lampenträger des 16. Jhs. werden mehr als 20 italienische Bronzen der Renaissance und des Barock abgebildet. /// Das vorrangige Ziel des Projekts ist die Feststellung des heutigen Aufbewahrungsortes der signifikanteren antiken Bronzen. Für die altägyptischen und die nachantiken Bronzen kann ein solches Unternehmen dagegen nur punktuell gelingen, da diese häufig in größerer Zahl hergestellt wurden, was die eindeutige Bestimmung der als Kupferstich abgebildeten ‚Repliken’ wesentlich erschwert. Nach aktueller Kenntnis lassen sich wenigstens fünf der antiken Bronzen in verschiedenen westeuropäischen Museen sowie im französischen Kunsthandel lokalisieren. Sachdienliche Hinweise aus dem Kreis internationaler Wissenschaftlerkollegen sind jederzeit herzlich willkommen.

Summary: More than a single object, the study of a group of comparable finds compiled from the archaeological literature allows more concrete statements to be made about temporal and spatial distribution. On this methodological basis, the author examines ancient bronze lamps with lateral handles in the form of human (or animal) ears. Here, a period of origin limited to the 2nd century B.C., i.e. the high Hellenistic epoch, is revealed, although in view of the formal diversity a larger number of manufacturers can be assumed. As far as can be proved so far, the distribution of these lamps reaches from Italy over the Balkans and the Near East to Yemen.

Summary: The fact that the indiscriminate categorization of post-antique bronze finds as 'forgeries' in many cases is not correct has long been 'communis opinio' among experts. But even the more cautious categorization of various bronzes under 'Falsa et Dubitanda' is always unsatisfactory when the post-antique origin is beyond question, but at the same time there is no indication of a deliberate intention to deceive on the part of the manufacturer. This is also the case with a group of three- and four-nozzled metal lamps, which are regularly published as Hellenistic bronze lamps, although on closer inspection they are obviously not.

Summary: Rare stereophotographs with archaeological motifs from Italy prove to be revealing documents for early object photography, the collection history of individual museums and the sometimes extraordinarily original presentation of antique finds in the 19th century. All in all, they form an exciting and rewarding object of research.

Dramatis personae. On the Function of Bronze Actor Statuettes of the Hellenistic-Roman Period

Abstract: In order to arrive at a better understanding of Late Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman bronze statuettes of actors in ancient comedy, it is necessary to first address the question of the practical use of the figures. Following this approach, the author arranges the not yet comprehensively collected material in several groups determined by the practical purpose. In doing so, significant changes become apparent in the course of the centuries.

Summary: Using selected figurative bronzes from the late Roman period, the author examines hitherto overlooked recourse to motifs from Hellenistic art. One focus of the study is devoted to the question of possible reasons for this phenomenon. What was the primary motivation of the obviously wealthy clients? Was it just nostalgia or was it a programmatic reference to bygone times that led to a resumption of Hellenistic motifs in the 4th century AD?

Source of life. Again on the topic of figural handles of late Roman bronze lamps.

Summary: The focus of the investigation is a characteristic group of late Roman bronze lamps, which come together through the almost identical shape of the handle or reflector. Three more or less completely preserved bilychnes and an isolated handle show an openwork disc depicting a crater or kantharus serving as a fountain with large S-shaped handles. By comparing it with bronze lamps that were created at the same time, which have very similar, circular and openwork handles with Christograms or Christian acclamations, the author comes to the conviction that even for the type presented here it is most likely a Christian Interpretation with reference to Christ as the 'source of life' should be favored.

Summary: Based on an old advertising photograph from around 1890, which happened to appear in the Internet trade a few years ago, the lecturer follows all the references to copies of Greek vases that were made from the late 19th to the early 20th century in the pottery factory, which initially specialized in the production of roof tiles by Bernhard Bertram (1832-1915) in Meckenheim-Lüftelberg near Bonn (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany). // The potters used the work “Griechische Keramik” published in Berlin in 1883 as a template with drawings by Albert Genick (1836-1906) as well as an introduction and comments by Adolf Furtwängler (1853-1907), the exclusively documentation of ancient vases of the then Royal Antiquarium (today: Antikensammlung - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin). // This article may serve as a teaching example of how, with the necessary luck, many interesting data and facts about a now almost forgotten art pottery and its production of antique vase copies can be recovered using an old photo and subsequent internet research.

Zusammenfassung: In diesem Artikel versucht der Autor, die Gründe nachzuvollziehen, die dazu geführt haben könnten, dass ein älteres oder gar prähistorisches Bronzeobjekt entweder nach wenigen Jahren oder nach vielen Jahrhunderten wieder aufgenommen, planmäßig überarbeitet und einer neuen Nutzung zugeführt wurde. Wie sich herausstellt, können wir in griechischen Klappspiegeln, die z. T. originale getriebene Bronzereliefs von Wangenklappen von Helmen, Schulterklappen von Brustpanzern u. ä. wiederverwenden, und in römischen Schnellwaagen mit sekundär umgearbeiteten Laufgewichten so etwas wie ein Massenphänomen beobachten, während alle anderen Fälle eher als Ausnahmen zu betrachten sind.

Summary: In this article, the author tries to trace the various motivations that may have led to an ancient or prehistoric bronze object being picked up again after only a few years or after many centuries, reworked in a planned manner and thus reuse was fed. As it turns out, in some Greek folding mirrors, which re-use original driven bronze relief from military equipment, and in some Roman steelyards that have reworked weights, we can observe something of an ancient mass phenomenon, while all other cases are rather isolated exceptions.

Summary: Lampstand, folding table or chariot - What were the Roman bronze statuettes of Greek 'philosophers' used for? The present study is concerned with the various practical functions of late Hellenistic and Roman Imperial bronze statuettes of Greek 'philosophers'. As a result, at least three different groups of materials emerge. In late Hellenism and in the early imperial period the statuettes of Greek intellectuals served as decorations for tool stands, in the 3rd century as tops for three- or four-legged folding tables, and in the 3rd and 4th centuries as ornaments for carriages. While the figures of the first group refer directly to Greek types, the bronzes of the second and third group also follow Greek types, but with a coarsening typical of the period, whereby two 'philosophers' on carriages, known so far only from Spain, may be regarded as antique replicas of the folding table tops made only a little earlier. In the early period the 'philosophers' are found on the top of monumental votive pillars rooted in the sacred idyllic landscapes that dominated the luxury of living at the time, while the tops of the folding and late imperial folding tables strikingly display the same broad range of themes (Achilles, Amazons, sea creatures, Odysseus, horses, etc.) that is known from the mosaic floors of the same period. According to today's knowledge, the folding tables appear to have both gatherings with three to four scholars and teaching scenes with one lecturer and two to three students.

Summary: Hinge, Socket or Tenon. Hellenistic bronze lamps decorated with statuettes. A search for traces. – From the Archaic period right down to Late Antiquity, particularly elaborate bronze lamps used to be decorated with free-standing figural representations. In Hellenistic times, mainly the fill holes for oil and, more rarely, the wick holes were covered with a lid crowned by statuettes. Unfortunately, not all lamps of this kind have survived in their entirety. To identify isolated bronze statuettes, for instance, as former lamp decoration elements, it takes both a sound knowledge of material and a thorough analysis of the technical features. Depending on the type of lamp, a distinction has to be made between figures fastened by soldering, lids fixed by means of a hinge, and covers with a socket or a tenon on the bottom. It is the lids of the latter category – with statuettes depicting Erotes, dancers, actors or other members of Dionysus’ entourage, usually attached to the center of a lamp with two or three nozzles (bilychnis / trilychnis) in the way of a  bayonet closure – that will constitute the subject-matter of my paper.

Summary: This presentation is the first overall study of Roman silhouette figures cut out of bronze sheets. The silhouette-shaped figures are mostly reduced to their outlines and show chiseled or engraved detail drawings. Whereas the figures have a wide distribution throughout the ancient world, they remain extraordinarily rare. Next to other deities, the silhouettes particularly often represent figures from an Apollonian entourage. Even though these figures are now robbed of their scenic contexts, a distinct emphasis on music and dance scenes can clearly be observed. Taking technical characteristics as well as information on find contexts into consideration, the author proposes that the silhouette figures were originally used as inlays for wooden musical instruments and furniture.

Summary: During the excavations carried out in the early 20th century by the Royal Museums of Berlin at the Apollo sanctuary of Didyma, three unusual attachments of Greek bronze cauldrons of the Archaic period (Didyma 7; Didyma 52; Didyma 66) were found, according to the finds book. While one (Didyma 52) has been lost since the destruction of the excavation house in the First World War (1916), the other two (Didyma 7; Didyma 66) were first transferred to the Antiquarium, today's Antikensammlung - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, and after 1945 by "war-related transfer" to the State Museum A. S. Pushkin in Moscow, where the author was able to identify them in 2009 and 2010, respectively, and study them in detail thanks to the kind cooperation of the then museum director, Irina Antonova, and her responsible assistant, Ludmilla Akimova. All three attachments, which were probably made in the 7th century BC, were originally characterised by three 'buttons' pointing upwards, a form for which no other parallel has yet been found despite a thorough search.

Zusammenfassung: Bei den im frühen 20. Jahrhundert durch die Königlichen Museen zu Berlin durchgeführten Ausgrabungen im Apollonheiligtum von Didyma wurden nach Auskunft des Fundbuchs drei ungewöhnliche Attaschen archaischer Bronzegefäße (Didyma 7; Didyma 52; Didyma 66) gefunden. Während eines (Didyma 52) seit der Zerstörung des Grabungshauses im Ersten Weltkrieg (1916) verschollen ist, kamen die beiden anderen (Didyma 7; Didyma 66) zunächst in das Antiquarium, die heutige Antikensammlung – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, und nach 1945 durch „kriegsbedingte Verlagerung“ in das Staatliche Museum A. S. Puschkin nach Moskau gelangten, wo sie der Verfasser in den Jahren 2009 bzw. 2010 identifizieren und dank des freundlichen Entgegenkommens der damaligen Museumsleiterin, Irina Antonova, und ihrer verantwortlichen Mitarbeiterin, Ludmilla Akimova, eingehend studieren konnte. Alle drei wohl noch im 7. Jh. v. Chr. entstandenen Attaschen zeichneten sich ursprünglich durch drei nach oben weisende ‚Knöpfe’ aus, eine Form, für die sich trotz gründlicher Suche bislang keine weitere Parallele finden ließ.

Summary: This essay deals with Roman bronze statuettes and presents a methodological proposal for researching this material further. It is generally divided into three parts. First, the research history will be briefly summarized by presenting the most important literature of the last 30 years. Secondly, a subjective view on promising research questions as well as demands and requirements for future research on the subject will follow. Following up the seminal work of Annemarie Kaufmann-Heinimann on Roman lararia and other archaeological contexts with several bronze statuettes, the author proposes to also focus future research on find contexts with only singular bronze statuettes. Thirdly, the author´s own research focus on Roman bronze statuettes will be discussed. Instead of dealing with the numerous figures of deities, the focus lies with the more rare depictions of daily themes. Based on three different statuettes – a male sower from Marina di Lugugnano in Portogruaro, a striding male figure from Montdidier in the Louvre and a presumed statuette of a farmer formerly archived, but now lost, in the Berliner Antikensammlung, the author is able to make new suggestions concerning the denomination of the figures. A further field of interest of the author also concerned Roman bronzes in old photographs. Finally, it will be claimed that a computer-based corpus of Roman bronze statuettes is needed that will replace Salomon Reinach’s exemplary, but partly over 100-year old Répertoire de la statuaire grecque et romaine.

Summary: The author reconstructs the history of the bronze stamps with Latin inscriptions in the Collection of the Antikensammlung - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. The acquisitions span a period of about three and a half centuries. The first stamp is already listed in the inventory of 1672. The last major acquisition is made up of 18 stamps from the estate of the epigraphist Heinrich Dressel (1845 - 1920). Since the losses of the Second World War, 50 of the former 64 bronze stamps have been preserved in whole or in part in Berlin. According to the latest information, two stamps are still in the Pushkin Museum in Moscow due to war-related displacement. All the others must be considered war losses.

Zusammenfassung: Der Verfasser rekonstruiert die Geschichte der Bronzestempel mit lateinischen Inschriften in der Antikensammlung der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin. Die Erwerbungen spannen sich über einen Zeitraum von rund dreieinhalb Jahrhunderten. Der erste Stempel ist bereits im Inventar von 1672 verzeichnet. Die letzte größere Erwerbung bilden 18 Stempel aus dem Nachlass des Epigraphikers Heinrich Dressel (1845 - 1920). Von ehemals 64 Bronzestempeln sind seit den Verlusten des Zweiten Weltkriegs noch 50 Exemplare ganz oder zum Teil in Berlin erhalten. Aufgrund kriegsbedingter Verlagerung befinden sich nach neuesten Erkenntnissen noch zwei Stempel im Puschkin-Museum in Moskau. Alle übrigen müssen als Kriegsverluste gelten.

Summary: The starting point of the present investigation is a previously unknown Roman bronze statuette in the depot of the Sculpture Collection of the Dresden State Art Collections. The figure was recovered from the ruins of the New Castle of Neschwitz near Bautzen (Saxony), which burnt down in May 1945. According to the testimony of a 17th century antique drawing in Reggio Emilia, however, it probably originated in Italy. The statuette follows an unusual type. It depicts a running naked man carrying a sack over his left shoulder and a vessel in the crook of his left arm, while his right arm is raised in acclamation. In comparison with a similar statuette on the art market as well as with related depictions on a city Roman sarcophagus, a lost clay lamp from Rome and a North African mosaic, the author finally arrives at a new interpretation, according to which it is likely to be a companion slave of a victorious athlete, equipped with a money or clothes bag and an aryballos.

Zusammenfassung: Den Ausgangspunkt der vorliegenden Untersuchung bildet eine bisher unbekannte römische Bronzestatuette im Magazin der Skulpturensammlung der Staatlichen Kunstsammlungen Dresden. Die Figur wurde aus den Ruinen des im Mai 1945 abgebrannten Neuen Schlosses von Neschwitz bei Bautzen (Sachsen) geborgen. Nach dem Zeugnis einer Antikenzeichnung des 17. Jahrhunderts in Reggio Emilia stammt sie vermutlich aber aus Italien. Die Statuette folgt einem ungewöhnlichen Typus. Dargestellt ist ein laufender nackter Mann, der einen Sack über der linken Schulter und ein Gefäß in der linken Armbeuge trägt, während der rechte Arm akklamierend erhoben ist. Im Vergleich mit einer ähnlichen Statuette im Kunsthandel sowie mit verwandten Darstellungen auf einem stadtrömischen Sarkophag, einer verschollenen Tonlampe aus Rom und einem nordafrikanischen Mosaik gelangt der Autor schließlich zu einer neuen Deutung, nach der es sich um mit Geldsack und Palästragerät aufgestattete Begleiter eines siegreichen Athleten handeln dürfte.

Summary: In the expectation that all known examples must be modern forgeries, the author examines bronze lamps with pictures on the top. The result shows that most of the pieces are in fact modern replicas of Roman clay lamps. This is clearly evident in those cases where replicas of the same type can be found. However, there are also some patinated lamps of this type in the literature which, judging by the illustrations, look like genuine antiquities. In these cases, it will only be possible to clarify by autopsy whether they are really authentic pieces.

Summary: The study is devoted to a special group of Roman bronze lamps. The lamps in the form of human and animal heads, which are not completely preserved in all cases, consist (or originally consisted) of two halves, each of which formed a functional lamp body of its own and were joined together by means of a rail and groove. The significance of this unusual construction is unknown, but it is reminiscent of the principle of a tessera hospitalis.

Summary: The study focuses on Hellenistic bronze lamps with a horizontally rotating closure of the oil hole. For this type of lamp, which can only be proven in small numbers (about ten examples), but which is found in Italy (near Penne, Abruzzo; San Casciano dei Bagni, Tuscany) and Greece (Alexandroupolis) to Mesopotamia (Uruk, Iraq), Persia (Susa, Iran) and the Caucasus (Vani, Georgia), the designation 'swivel lid' is proposed here to distinguish it from plug-in or hinged lids, which were inserted into the oil hole by means of a cylindrical spout or pin, or were connected to a hinge, which allowed the oil hole to be opened or closed by folding the lid over. While the size of the hinged lids was limited by the fact that the figures hit their heads against the lamp handle when they were opened, a figure that was too large on a swivel lid could, in the worst case, have unbalanced the entire lamp. It seems that in this there is a lack of technical maturity and at the same time the reason why the lamps with swivel lids are not only rarer compared to the lamps with plug-in or hinged lids, but also have a shorter duration, which is unlikely to go beyond the end of the 2nd century BC.

Summary: Starting with the earliest photographs of Roman bronze statuettes preserved in the archives of the Collection of Classical Antiquities of the National Museums in Berlin, the author first examines the beginning of scientific work with photographs of ancient sculpture and small art in Berlin, which was decisively influenced by Eduard Gerhard (1795-1867), the first archaeologist at the museum, and can be dated to the years around 1860. He then discusses three unpublished bronzes, some of which have disappeared: the statuette of a naked boy playing the double flute, the head of a large statuette of Attis and a chariot bronze in the shape of Bacchus. Illustrated by further photographs from the archive and the photo library of the Berlin Collection of Classical Antiquities, the book ends with a plea for the systematic review and evaluation of historical photo collections.

Zusammenfassung: Ausgehend von den frühesten im Archiv der Antikensammlung der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin erhaltenen Fotografien römischer Bronzestatuetten untersucht der Verfasser zuerst den in Berlin maßgeblich durch Eduard Gerhard (1795–1867), den ersten Archäologen am Museum, geprägten und in die Jahre um 1860 anzusetzenden Beginn des wissenschaftlichen Arbeitens mit Fotografien antiker Plastik und Kleinkunst. Danach behandelt er exemplarisch drei mutmaßlich unveröffentlichte, heute z. T. verschollene Bronzen: die Statuette eines ehemals auf der Doppelflöte spielenden nackten Knaben, den Kopf einer großen Attisstatuette und eine Wagenbronze in Gestalt des Bacchus. Illustriert durch weitere Fotografien aus dem Archiv und der Fotothek der Berliner Antikensammlung steht am Ende ein Plädoyer für die systematische Sichtung und Auswertung historischer Fotobestände.

Summary: Using selected examples, the author gives an overview of the methodological possibilities for the visual recovery of Roman and Late Antique bronze lamps, chandeliers and lanterns. As it turns out, a geographically wide-ranging collection of comparative pieces offers ideal conditions for reassigning even highly fragmented bronzes, which have survived without provenance or find context, to their original functional context.

AEQUIPONDIA. Figurative weights of Roman and early Byzantine steelyards

This dissertation, completed at the University of Bonn in the summer of 1991, is the first comprehensive compilation and systematic study of the genre of Roman small bronze art mentioned in the title. Through a consistent separation of so-called 'secondary', i.e. subsequently reworked and dubious steelyard weights as well as some special forms and forgeries, which are discussed in appendices as well as the depictions of steelyards on Roman reliefs, a catalog of over 500 figurative steelyard weights, many of them previously unpublished, is compiled, covering the period from the 2nd/1st century BC to the 8th century AD. In addition to questions of production technique, distribution and dating, a detailed iconographic study and the interpretation of the depictions are the focus of interest.

Abstract: Art without context? - Iconographic observations on (formerly) attached heads of ideal bronze statues

The fact that Roman bronze statues, like almost all archaeological finds, are often only preserved in the form of isolated pieces or fragments should be familiar to any attentive museum visitor, as should the fact that the intellectual completion and interpretation of such fragments is one of the most challenging tasks of classical archaeologists. However, until now the focus of interest has rarely been on isolated preserved heads that were originally connected to the now lost body of a statue by soldering. The lecturer will now use selected examples to show that even some of the heads not exhibited for aesthetic reasons provide extraordinarily interesting clues on closer inspection that allow conclusions to be drawn about the dating, naming and not least the typological classification of the entire work of art.

Summary: Using selected figurative bronzes from the late Roman period, the author examines hitherto overlooked recourse to motifs from Hellenistic art. One focus of the study is devoted to the question of possible reasons for this phenomenon. What was the primary motivation of the obviously wealthy clients? Was it just nostalgia or was it a programmatic reference to bygone times that led to a resumption of Hellenistic motifs in the 4th century AD?

Copies of Greek vases from Bernhard Bertram's pottery factory in Lüftelberg near Bonn

Summary: Based on an old advertising photograph from around 1890, which happened to appear in the Internet trade a few years ago, the lecturer follows all the references to copies of Greek vases that were made from the late 19th to the early 20th century in the pottery factory, which initially specialized in the production of roof tiles by Bernhard Bertram (1832-1915) in Meckenheim-Lüftelberg near Bonn (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany). The main question is about the range of types, the models and possibly copies that are still preserved today.

Im Rahmen eines von der DFG geförderten Forschungsprojekts an der JGU Mainz beschäftigt sich der Vortragende seit Sommer 2017 mit hellenistisch-römischen und spätantiken Bronzen aus dem Nahen Osten und von der Arabischen Halbinsel. Anhand von figürlich geschmückten Lampen und verwandten Objekten der Hausausstattung sollen im Vortrag bisher unbekannte Aspekte des antiken Wohnluxus beleuchtet werden. Im Mittelpunkt stehen dabei verschiedene Studien zur Ikonographie von Sklaven und Handwerkern sowie zu Benennung und Bedeutung spätantiker Stadtpersonifikationen.

Norbert Franken

Scharnier, Tülle oder Zapfen
Hellenistische Bronzelampen mit Statuettendekor. Eine Spurensuche

Von archaischer Zeit bis in die Spätantike war es üblich, besonders prachtvolle Bronzelampen mit freiplastischem Figurenschmuck zu versehen. In hellenistischer Zeit wurden vor allem die Öllöcher, seltener auch die Dochtlöcher, mit einem statuettenbekrönten Deckel verschlossen. Leider sind nicht alle noch existierenden Lampen dieser Art vollständig erhalten. Um also z. B. isolierte Bronzestatuetten als ehemaligen Lampendekor bestimmen zu können, bedarf es sowohl solider Materialkenntnis als auch sorgfältiger Analyse technischer Merkmale. Je nach Lampentyp sind mittels Scharnier befestigte Klappdeckel und mit einer Tülle bzw. einem Zapfen an der Unterseite versehene Verschlüsse zu unterscheiden. Diese zuletzt genannten Deckel mit den zumeist nach dem Prinzip des Bajonettverschlusses in die Mitte einer zwei- oder dreischnauzigen Lampe (Bilychnis / Trilychnis) eingesetzten Statuetten von Eroten, Tänzern, Schauspielern oder anderen Gestalten aus dem Umkreis des Dionysos bilden das Thema meines Referats.

Norbert Franken
Hinge, Spout or Tenon
Hellenistic bronze lamps decorated with statuettes. A search for traces

From the Archaic period right down to Late Antiquity, particularly elaborate bronze lamps used to be decorated with free-standing figural representations. In Hellenistic times, mainly the fill holes for oil and, more rarely, the wick holes were covered with a lid crowned by statuettes. Unfortunately, not all lamps of this kind have survived in their entirety. To identify isolated bronze statuettes, for instance, as former lamp decoration elements, it takes both a sound knowledge of material and a thorough analysis of the technical features. Depending on the type of lamp, a distinction has to be made between lids fixed by means of a hinge, and covers with a spout or a tenon on the bottom. It is the lids of the latter category – with statuettes depicting Erotes, dancers, actors or other members of Dionysus’ entourage, usually attached to the center of a lamp with two of three nozzles (bilychnis / trilychnis) in the way of a bayonet closure – that will constitute the subject-matter of my paper.

This presentation is the first overall study of Roman silhouette figures cut out of bronze sheets. The silhouette-shaped figures are mostly reduced to their outlines and show chiseled or engraved detail drawings. Whereas the figures have a wide distribution throughout the ancient world, they remain extraordinarily rare. Next to other deities, the silhouettes particularly often represent figures from an Apollonian entourage. Even though most of these figures are now robbed of their scenic contexts, a distinct emphasis on music and dance scenes can clearly be observed. Taking technical characteristics as well as information on find contexts into consideration, the author proposes that the silhouette figures were originally used as inlays for wooden musical instruments and furniture.

Summary: Obviously much rarer than on large-scale bronze statues are to be observed on small-scale Roman bronze statuettes and related monuments appendages of coiffure parts, such as the temporal hairs or a neck knot. The author tries to find out the actual sense and purpose of this extraordinarily elaborate technical procedure. Since appendages of parts of the hairstyle - similar to bronze statues - are most likely to be recognized when they have fallen out and have been lost, this investigation shall also serve to develop an increased sensitivity for this technique. In this respect, the author is confident that in the near future, with the help of modern scientific examination methods, it may also be possible to detect hairpieces attached to better preserved Roman small bronzes.

Summary: Based on the unusual Hellenistic bronze statuette of a satyr in the Antikensammlung - Museumslandschaft Hessen Kassel, the author examines a number of groups of figures, mostly only preserved as fragments, which showed Dionysus, who previously leaned on the figure of a satyr or a Silenus.

Summary: The antiquities collection of the Italian antiquarian and art historian Giovanni Pietro Bellori (1613 - 1696) came to the Berlin 'Kunstkammer' in 1698. Despite some losses over time and especially at the end of the Second World War, many pieces of this important collection are still in the 'Antikensammlung' of the State Museums in Berlin. The author gives here a first detailed report on his research on the ancient bronzes of the Bellori collection, which can be considered the most important collection of ancient bronzes from Rome.