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Bronze Dancer Statuette

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 12:22:38 +0000

A wonderful example of Hellenistic Realism, this bronze sculpture depicts a street dancer who appears to be suffering from some type of deformity or illness. We see the artist taking extreme care to capture the details. We can see clearly the energetic movements of the dancer. It is difficult to gauge the age of the dancer, but from the figure’s extreme thinness and facial features, we surmise that we are observing a man who is getting on in years.

Guennol Lioness Fetched Highest Price for Sculpture

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:40:30 +0000

Guennol Lioness

Here is a statue sold at Sotheby’s in New York. It is a three-inch-tall ancient limestone sculpture of a lioness that sold for $57.2 million in December 2007. The statue, known as the Guennol Lioness, is 5,000 years old and originates from Mesopotamia, where it was discovered not far from Baghdad in the early part of the 20th century by archeologist Sir Leonard Woolley. The winning price almost doubled the previous high that had been paid for a sculpture, and was three times the pre-sale estimate of the piece’s value.

Owning Ancient Art-A Privilege and a Responsibility

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 07:52:04 +0000

Of course, private individuals and collectors purchase antiquities to furnish their houses with the beauty and meaning that come from such objects. But along with the privilege of owning rare artifacts comes the responsibility of acting as a custodian for each work of art.

Ultimately these objects that have come down to us over hundreds—and, in some cases–thousands of years—of not really belong to any one individual, but belong to our communal culture and heritage. Each individual owner is only escorting the object through time, so that it continues to “live” for future generations.

As one antique dealer, Ali Aboutaam, explained “Our clients never really own any of these works, but merely look after them in their best possible interest (restoration, conservation, studying, publishing, exhibiting, etc…), for only a brief time span, until parting, and then someone else, be it an individual or an institution, takes over that responsibility.”

Art and Watch Making, Le Temps au Féminine

Fri, 01 May 2009 10:00:55 +0000

Head of Goddess

Here is a marvelous Hellenistic head of the Greek Goddess Aphrodite that was contributed to an art exhibit sponsored by the French watchmaker Audemars Piguet. The marble bust, dating back to the 4th or beginning of the 3rd century B.C.E. is part of the exhibit “Art and Watch making, Le Temps au Féminin,” which is part of the “Association pour l’Art en Vieille Ville – AVV” in Geneva. The exhibit runs from May 1st to May 9th, 2009.