Etruscan Bronze Handle w/ Female Sphinxes, Silver Inlay

Classical World, Etruria, ca. 6th to 5th century BCE. Expertly cast via the lost wax (cire perdue) process, a fascinating bronze handle depicting a pair of sirens, each with the head of a woman, eagle wings, and the body of a lion and presenting traces of silver inlay in places, below the beautifully modeled handle presenting elegantly ridged borders and a central bas-relief long stemmed flower. An exquisite bronze handle, replete with impressive style, technique, and iconography - certainly worthy of an opulent vessel that was perhaps used to impress guests at a banquet or symposium. Size: 2.625" W x 7" H (6.7 cm x 17.8 cm); 8.875" H (22.5 cm) on included custom stand.

Although the Great Sphinx of Giza is certainly the most famous, sphinxes have a large place in Classical mythology as well - probably because of the intermixing of Egyptian and Classical culture via trade routes across the Mediterranean. The Classical version of the sphinx, unlike the male Egyptian one, has the head of a human female, the body of a lioness, the wings of an eagle, and a serpent's tail.

Provenance: private New Jersey, USA collection; ex-Ancient Resource Auctions, Montrose, California, USA; ex-Los Angeles, California, USA collection

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#150266
Condition Report: Areas of loss to upper end of the handle and peripheries of the sphinx relief at the lower end. Minute nicks to high relief ridges of the handle and high-pointed areas of the sphinx relief.