Roman Bronze Double Spouted Oil Lamp

Roman, Imperial Period, ca. 1st to 2nd century CE. A beautifully symmetrical cast bronze oil lamp featuring two delicate projecting spouts with heart-shaped openings and decorative scrollwork encircling them. The body is a flattened sphere, with a short, round rim encircling its fill hole in the center. The entire vessel features a gorgeous pale green mottled patina. Size: 6" W x 1.55" H (15.2 cm x 3.9 cm)

Despite the prevalence of terracotta lamps, bronze oil lamps are among the rarest artifacts to come from the Roman Empire. Their scarcity, however, is a reminder of how everyday life would have been for the people who used them. Bronze examples like this were only affordable to upper class households due to the inherent cost and time associated with the processing, refinement, and ultimately casting of bronze. This particular example is much finer than average, with its meticulous attention to detail and sturdy composition, and was probably created for and belonged to a member of the Roman elite who would have passed it down as a family heirloom.

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-William Froelich collection, New York, USA, collected in the 1970s

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#154195
Condition Report: Small area on the lower back (away from the spouts) of scratching/flattening that appears to have been part of the bronze casting process. Otherwise excellent with great smooth pale green patina and light deposits.