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Sale 76
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Lot 514
Roman "Foot" Oil Lamp. Hanging lamp in the form of a sandalled right foot. Chain for hanging on lampstand attached above ankle and below instep. The sandal is of the Greek type, high in back, sloping downward around the ankle bone and tying over the instep. The toes are left bare except for straps. Nozzle attached to big toe; reservoir underneath foot, sole of sandal patterned. Green-patinated bronze. Lid covering filling hole where the foot terminates above the ankle is missing, otherwise intact. Fine workmanship. Provenance: Asia Minor, c. 2nd century A.D. L: 12.5 cm, W (of base): 2.3 cm., H: 6.5 cm., L. of chain: 20 cm. Housed in a custom-made, velvet-lined shadow box.
The following information is taken from the 1976 catalog in which this foot was sold (see Provenance). "Lamps in the form of a right foot or a pair of feet, usually sandalled, were popular throughout the Roman empire during the 1st-2nd centuries A.D. The fact that feet, either singly or in pairs, have a history of representation as both funerary and cult objects indicates that the origin of the form had a significance beyond mere fashion.
The idea of death as a journey into an unknown land is one common to many cultures over a long period of time. Usually a barrier, most often a body of water, separated the worlds of the living and the dead. In ancient Persia the belief prevailed that the dead crossed the river separating the worlds on foot rather than in the traditional boat. Vases in the form of footwear found there in Iron Age tombs seem to indicate a symbolic gesture to make sure the dead had comfortable feet on the trip. The belief passed to Egypt where by the Hellenistic period the foot form was used for sarcophagi and cinerary urns presumably designed so that the deceased could be spared the hardship of having to walk. Apparently the idea existed in Italy as well because a sarcophagus in the form of a sandalled right foot was discovered at Reggio.
During the 1st-2nd centuries A.D. the cult of Serapis which also came to Rome from Egypt produced a group of monuments in the form of gigantic right feet, often sandalled. The god was also a popular subject for lamps, probably because of the identification of Serapis with the sun and the obvious connection of the lamp also with the sun.
A common feature to the feet that appear singly, whether Persian, Egyptian or Roman, is that they are all right feet. It is therefore probably that the idea of the left as being unlucky also came to Rome from the East. This superstition is recorded by Petronius in describing Trimalchio's unforgettable dinner party at which a servant was posted to make sure the guests crossed into the room with the right foot first.
Examining [this lamp] in relation to this background presents some interesting theories. The lamp lacks any orientalizing features that might link it directly with the foot of Serapism making its connection with the god, if in fact such a connection exists, an oblique one. A connection between this lamp form and the funerary monuments is more likely because of the importance of lamps in burial ritual and the idea of crossing into the other world in the proper manner.
[This lamp] was a very expensive one in its day and could easily have belonged to just the sort of people Petronius was writing about. Actually on a lampstand such as Lucretius describes and which was discovered at Pompeii it would have been a perfect re-creation of Petronius' image, and it would have lighted the threshold at the same time that it reminded the crosser which foot to use. The naturalistic representation of this lamp as a foot dressed in a Greek-style sandal limits it to private use of some kind because the normal Roman footgear was boots or shoes, sandals being reserved for wear at home and at dinner parties. It is therefore unlikely that such a lamp would have been placed in any sort of official building.
Most likely this lamp is a tomb find, although its exact provenance is unknown. It may have been brought to the tomb as part of the household effects of its original owner, or it may have been specifically intended to aid him in crosssing the threshold to the other world on the right foot and to light his path as he did so. Separating the domestic and ritual functions of this lamp may not be necessary. One has only to examine the Etruscan funerary monuments connecting the idea of death with that of a banquet to discover the appropriateness of our lamp in both capacities." Estimated Value $5,000-UP
Featured on the cover of Journal of Numismatic Fine Arts, Winter 1976, Lot 61. Sold for $5,000. Catalog for that sale is included with this lot.
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| Realized $2,640 |
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