955 - Jug handle with figurative decoration, Roman, 2nd–3rd centuries B.C.

Jug handle with figurative decoration, Roman, 2nd–3rd centuries B.C. From the upper, only slightly rising, short section, bent downward at approximately a right angle. These sections are solid. At the bottom, it transitions into a wide, sheet-metal, leaf-shaped attachment, ending at the top with two lateral volutes, featuring a figurative depiction in three-quarter relief that incorporates Dionysian elements: The genius of autumn, with a vitis (vine) slung over his right shoulder, from which a pelt (panther pelt?) hangs down above the shoulder. In the pelt wrapped around his neck, a bundle of fruit (grapes?) rests in front of his chest. With his left hand, he strokes the head of a leaping panther. Above this, in half-relief on the heel of a foot of a tripod, is another seated panther. Above the panther’s head are two theater masks leaning against each other at the back of their heads. At the bend where the handle meets the upper part of the vessel, there is a notched double bead. Behind it is an upward-curving, tongue-shaped petal, flanked on either side by two leaves with volutes at the ends, where it was soldered to the rim of the jug. At the end of the central leaf is a small head facing toward the spout. The lower attachment is slightly chipped at the bottom; at the top, the left volute is broken off. Otherwise, an intact and elaborately decorated handle from a wine jug. Height 16.5 cm. CULTURAL HERITAGE! Provenance: Acquired from the German art market in the summer of 2026. Previously in a private collection in the Rhineland. Acquired for the collection prior to 2000. Condition: II