122 - A GREEK-CYPRIOT SILVER BRACELET FRAGMENT WITH A GOLD LION HEAD, CLASSICAL PERIOD, 5TH CENTURY BC

A GREEK-CYPRIOT SILVER BRACELET FRAGMENT WITH A GOLD LION HEAD, CLASSICAL PERIOD, 5TH CENTURY BC Finely crafted, the undecorated penannular rod terminating in a small, finely modeled gold lion head, the face defined by a pair of bulging eyes and a prominent muzzle with gaping jaws revealing sharp fangs, flanked by rounded ears emerging from a luxuriant mane. Provenance: Bruno Cooper Works of Art, Norwich, United Kingdom, 2004. Collection of Paolo Bertuzzi, acquired from the above and thence by descent. A copy of the signed invoice from Bruno Cooper, dated 15 December 2004, addressed to Paolo Bertuzzi, confirming the attribution and dating above, and stating a purchase price for the present lot of GBP 2,800 or approx. EUR 6,000 (converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing), accompanies this lot. Morley ‘Bruno’ Cooper (d. 2012) arrived in England from the USA in 1958 on a scholarship to Cambridge. After a successful academic career mostly at the University of East Anglia, he transformed what had been an absorbing hobby, dabbling in antiques, into a full career. Trading in the Suffolk town of Long Melford, he quickly established a reputation for the fine European furniture he stocked. Always restless, he eventually became bored the furniture market; he closed the shop, and, from then on, exhibited exclusively at international antique fairs where his reputation spread wider. His stock was characterised by his personal eclecticism; like a cabinet of curiosities. Towards the end of his life, his interests had focused increasingly on to Asia and Indian sculpture in particular. Paolo Bertuzzi (1943-2022) was a fashion stylist from Bologna. He was the son of Enrichetta Bertuzzi, founder of Hettabretz, a noted Italian fashion company with customers such as the Rothschild family, Audrey Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor. Paolo Bertuzzi later took over his mother’s business and designed exclusive pieces, some of which were exhibited in the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, USA. He was also an avid collector of antiques for more than sixty years. His collection includes both archaic and contemporary art, and he edited two important books about Asian art, Goa Made - An Archaeological Discovery, about a large-scale archaeological project carried out with the Italian and Indonesian governments, and Majapahit, Masterpieces from a Forgotten Kingdom. Condition: Fragmentary preservation with obvious losses. Otherwise in good condition, with expected wear, manufacturing irregularities, and small dents. The gold lion-head is exceptionally well preserved, retaining remarkably crisp details and presenting beautifully. Weight: 14.5 g Dimensions: Length 8.1 cm The present bracelet, known in ancient Greek as a ‘pselion’, belongs to a well-established type of personal adornment of the Classical period, consisting of a penannular rod terminating in gold animal heads. Originating in the Achaemenid world, bracelets of this form were produced in a range of sizes: smaller examples were worn at the wrist, larger ones such as the present piece near the elbow, and the grandest on the upper arm. Animal-head terminals were a common feature of Greek jewelry and were widely employed on earrings, clasps, and bracelets, with rams, lions, goats, and bulls among the most frequently represented. Literature comparison: Compare a closely related Greek bracelet with gold ram-headed terminals, Southern Italy, dated to the 4th century BC, 7.8 cm wide, in the Victoria & Albert Museum, accession number 8855-1863. Compare a closely related Greek silver bracelet with gold lion-headed finials, dated to the 5th-4th century BC, 7.9 cm wide, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, object number 30.115.86. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Christie’s New York, 8 December 2016, lot 39 Price: USD 6,000 or approx. EUR 7,200 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Description: A Greek silver bracelet with gold duck terminals, Classical period, c. 5th century BC Expert remark: Compare the closely related form and size (8.3 cm) with similarly modeled gold animal-headed finials. Note the state of preservation.