Re-carved Child's Sarcophagus with Woman's Portrait & Lid

Sculpture

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Hammond Castle Museum

Name/Title

Re-carved Child's Sarcophagus with Woman's Portrait & Lid

Entry/Object ID

HM-404. a&b

Tags

Pacifici purchase

Description

Re-carved child sarcophagus, strigillated, with portrait Roman Imperial Period 2nd to 4th century CE Re-carved in 1920s Material Marble of chest: very fine grain, white with bluish streaks, evenly layered, Greek, possibly Pentelic or, less likely, Proconnesian. Marble of lid: very fine grain, white, type unclear. Dimensions Chest: 27 cm (height) x 104.4 cm (length) x 44.2 cm (width) Lid: 7.8 cm (height) x 102 cm (length) x 46 cm (width) Condition Chest and lid badly battered. Lid has hole, broken in two pieces and repaired. All of the reliefs on the chest, the lid's half-palmette, and possibly all the lid's tiles were re-carved in the 1920s. Description A portrait of an adult female in a roundel highlights the middle of the front of this strigillated sarcophagus; below the roundel is a small dolphin with its tail up and head down; at each far end a panel frames an upright olive or, more likely, laurel branch. Each narrow side consists of a similar panel towards the front and, behind, a large garland. A raised surface with a slightly sunken circular depression for the head is on the left side of the floor of the chest. The lid is shaped like a roof with U-shaped tiles and corner acroteria. Provenance February 1927 Pacifici purchased from Angelo Viti By 1 December 1927, Hammond purchased it from Armando Pacifici Location By March 15, 1928 at the head of the pool at Hammond Castle Museum By 18 August 1929 moved to 1st Gallery Winter of 2024 moved to the courtyard under dining room window Bibliography Vermeule, C. “Roman Sarcophagi in America: A Short Inventory,” in Festschrift für Friedrich Matz, edited by N. Himmelmann-Wildschütz and H. Biesantz, p. 102, cat. no. 2 ( Mainz: Philipp von Zabern, 1962). "a child's sarcophagus (or large urn) with bust of a lady in the front center, Greek gabled and :"tiled" roof, and garlands on the end, pilasters on the corners (ca. A.D. 130)." Unpublished, archived documents

General Notes

Note Type

1966 Corinne Witham Guidebook (40)

Note Type

1970 Guide Book to Tower 007

Note Type

1929-08-18 Sunday Boston Post (Sun, Moon & Rain at Will, new bldg)

Note Type

1965 ca Tower Gallery Inventory, copy 1 p(1)

Note Type

1970ca Handwritten Inventory p(27) - 1st Floor Gallery

Note Type

1927-12-01 from Pacifici (3 piece sarcophagus, Viti)

Note Type

Gloucester-HM-404 Recut-Child Sarc 07-14-24 [Cohon]