Published Roman Stone Mosaic Head of Oceanus

Roman, Imperial Period, ca. 2nd to 3rd century CE. A very fine Roman stone mosaic comprised of thousands of stone tesserae, depicting the head of Oceanus - the personification of the ocean - against a blue background that is surrounded by a geometric border with illusionistic recessions, all delineated in a rich palette of peach, beige, grey, black, brown, and gold hues on a pale blue ground. The deity has wavy hair framing his bearded and mustachioed face, with one large tuft rising above the forehead. Two opposing lobsters emerge from the top of the god's head, thus identifying him as Oceanus. The panel is framed by two rows of black tesserae with a decorative border of cubes seen in perspective. In addition, a section of a geometric design is present to the right. Size: 28.5" W x 26.75" H (72.4 cm x 67.9 cm); 30" W x 28.125" H (76.2 cm x 71.4 cm) including matrix and metal frame

Cf. mosaics in the Bardo Museum, illustrated in Michele Blanchard-Lemee et. al, "Mosaics of Roman Africa: Floor Mosaics from Tunisia" (London, 1996), figs. 80 and 84, pp. 120 & 125.

Published in "Timeless Treasures." Fortuna Fine Arts, Ltd., New York, 2010, cat. no. 40.

Provenance: East Coast, USA collection; Published in "Timeless Treasures." Fortuna Fine Arts, Ltd., New York, 2010, cat. no. 40.

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.

Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.

#146424
Condition Report: Expected losses, stains, and fissures to some tesserae as shown. There is a small area of the neck - less than 2% of the surface - with some breaks/losses that are filled with matching material. This indicates a very minor area of restoration. The damage and losses are ancient and minor and certainly not unusual. Aside from the obvious losses, this mosaic is still excellent. Suspension hardware on verso. Stone tesserae are ancient, matrix and metal frame are modern.