Kunst und Antiquitäten - Antiken, Asiatika und Russische Kunst

| 109 59 Besondere Beachtung verdient die sinnträch­ tigeAufschrift auf der Schulter der Urne, die in einem Zweizeiler, vom Versmaß her ein soge- nanntes „elegisches Distichon”, die Vergäng- lichkeit aller Dinge treffend inWorte fasst: QVANTVM EST IN VITA FAMAE VIRTVTIS HONORIS / ENAT QVAM PARVOS MORS REDIGIT CINERES. Eine wörtliche Übersetzung der im Lateini- schen wohlgewählten Worte ins Deutsche ist schwerfällig und erst eine freiere Paraphrase vermag dem Sinnspruch wieder Fluss zu verlei- hen: „Wieviel es im Leben an Ruhm, Tugend und Ehre gibt, erweist sich darin, wie kleine Aschehäufchen der Tod daraus macht.”. Die Buchstaben sind wohl proportioniert und genau bemessen auf die Außenseite der Urne eingemeißelt worden. Sowohl der Dichter als auch der Kalligraph bewiesen bei der Ausfüh- rung die meisterhafte Beherrschung ihres Handwerks. Ein Dokument römischer Sach- und Geistes- kultur von großer Seltenheit. Oberfläche mit fleckiger Patina mit Grün-, Blau- und Brauntönen. DurchMineralisierung fragile Stellen undminimaleAusbrüche imun- terenDrittel der Urne fachmännisch von innen her restauriert und stabilisiert. Höhe mit De- ckel 46 cm. Provenienz: Süddeutsche Privatsammlung. A Roman bronze urn with profound epigram in sophisticated calligraphy, 1st - 2nd century Urn of exceptionally beautiful design. The con- ical base is beaded at the rim and widens some- what like a funnel after the narrowest part. The egg-shaped body of the urn is soldered to this narrow base. A hollow groove above the shoul- der, above which the lip of the rim, which is curved outwards and offset inwards to accom- modate the lid. At the transition from the belly to the shoulder, two horizontally arranged han- dles with attachments in the form of openwork palmettes are soldered on opposite sides. The handles curving elegantly upwards, profiled in the centre by three vertical bulges and on the sides by three horizontal flutes. Two turning grooves running around at the lower edge of the handles. The lid on the top divided from the outside to the inside by a wide bead, a concavity and a slight central bulge, the height of which is marked by three concentric, deeply carved cir- cles. In the centre, a vertical rectangular handle plate connected by a round pin to a disc under the lid. This device can be used to open or close a perforation on the side of the handle plate. The feeding of the dead was an integral part of the ancient culture of remembrance; at com- memorative ceremonies the dead person was thought of and experienced as present, symbol- ically participating in the ceremony of the living at a funerary banquet through offerings of food or drink. The sealing mechanism could be in- terpreted as ensuring the immediate provision of the deceased with these offerings. Special attention should be paid to the evocative inscription on the shoulder of the urn, which aptly expresses the transience of all things in a two-line verse, known as an “elegiac distich”: QVANTVM EST IN VITA FAMAE VIRTVTIS HONORIS / ENAT QVAM PARVOS MORS REDIGIT CINERES. A literal translation of the well-chosen words in Latin into English is cumbersome and only a freer paraphrase is able to lend fluency to the motto: “Howmuch there is in life of glory, virtue and honour, is shown by how small a heap of ashes death makes of it.”. The letters have been chiselled onto the outside of the urn, well-pro- portioned and precisely measured. Both the poet and the calligrapher demonstratedmastery of their craft in the execution. An eloquent document of Roman material and intellectual culture of great rarity. Surface with spotty patina with shades of green, blue and brown. Fragile areas due to mineralisation and minimal chipping in the lower third of the urn, expertly restored and stabilised from the inside. Height with lid 46 cm. P rovenance : SouthGerman private collection. 296126 II - € 25.000