Estimated at a more modest $8000-12,000 in the Chicago sale, it was the highlight of the firm’s first dedicated auction of Antiquities and Ancient Art.
Dated to the 1st century AD, this striking 16in (40cm) marble sculpture is an interpretation of the famed creation by Doidalsas of Bithynia, a 3rd-century BC sculptor celebrated for his depictions of Venus, the goddess of love. Originally commissioned by King Nicomedes I, the second king of the Greek kingdom of Bithynia, the form of Venus bathing was widely admired in the Roman period.
This fragmentary version had been acquired by the Chicago owner in 1969 from Paris dealership Galerie Simone de Monbrison.
Rostrum return
Roman white marble bust of Titus, $19,000 (£15,000) at Freeman’s Hindman.
A 7in (18cm) high Roman marble portrait head was making a relatively speedy return to the rostrum.
This piece had appeared for sale at Doyle New York as recently as October 2023 when it was catalogued as ‘Imperial Roman style’ and thought to depict the emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, known as Caracalla. Then, estimated at $300-600, it sold for a premium-inclusive $5670 (£4650).
At Freeman’s Hindman it was fully attributed to the Flavian period and a compelling case was made to suggest it was a portrait of the short-lived emperor Titus Caesar Vespasianus (79-81AD). He is best known for overseeing the brutal suppression of Judea’s civil war and inaugurating the Flavian Amphitheatre (the Colosseum) with 100 days of gladiatorial games.
Vesuvius erupted during his brief tenure, shrouding the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in volcanic ash.
The bust was estimated at $10,000-15,000 and took $19,000 (£15,000).
