Roman oil lamp with Eagle - dating / style help

[SC]

Could the lamp specialists let me know the dating period of this lamp and what the style (with the pointed mouth) is called.

Also, has anyone ever seen the design, eagle, wings spread, head left, standing on fulmen, in any literature?

Shawn

[benito]

Volute.  Volutes extending from the nozzle  . Predominately produced in Italy during the Early Roman Empire period.  Wide discus,  narrow shoulder and no handle.  Artistic finishing, and a wide range of patterns of decoration.

The type is known.

[SC]

Thanks Benito.  Do you have any references for the design?  I would like to include details of known finds if possible.

Also how long was the volute type used - into the 2nd century?

Shawn

[benito]

The volute lamp goes into the second century.
Right now all my books are in storage,unfortunately they have been for more than six years.. As far as I can recall I saw you type
either in a catalogue of an Italian museum or in   Bailey,  Catalogue of Lamps in the British Museum.

[Jay GT4]

Very cool lamp!  Love the eagle

[Strobilus]

Hello Shawn,

As Ramon (benito) has noted, the style of your lamp is known as the "volute type", i.e. these lamps have a large discus and the nozzle is decorated with volutes either side. The majority have no handles. The style was introduced in Italy around the last quarter of the 1st Century BC and was eventually imitated by workshops in many provinces. It remained popular into the first quarter of the 2nd Century AD.

The detailed classification of the volute type by Siegfried Loeschcke is that most generally accepted but the type can be very broadly divided typologically into two sub-categories: those in which the nozzle is fluked or "angled" and those in which the nozzle is "rounded". The two sub-categories, respectively VA and VR, can be seen here on my website: http://www.romulus2.com/lamps/lampcat/lampcat2.shtml

Your lamp is roughly based on those found in the Balkans and dated to the second half of the 1st Century AD - but unfortunately I strongly suspect that your example is almost certainly a modern fake made in Bulgaria. Your image is not clear but the details, fabric and so on do seem to support that conclusion. The Bulgarian fakes are very convincing at first glance (and have occasionally fooled even high-end dealers and auction houses) but they are normally quite easily spotted after some experience.

A small selection of the Bulgarian fakes is shown here: http://www.romulus2.com/lamps/fakes/fakes1.shtml#bulgarianvolute

An eagle with wings spread is a common motif on authentic lamps of this type and the fakes often directly copy those motifs.

[SC]

David,

Thanks for your message.  The lamp looks better in hand and is from a knowledgeable dealer - though as you say that does not guarantee anything.  The image I posted is very poor - it is snapped from my macbook camera and my first thought too was the image makes it look fake.

I am travelling now but will be home in a few days and will take proper shots of the lamp with a real camera.  I will post those pics here and get your views again.

Shawn
 

[SC]

David,

Here are better images of the lamp.  I chose "medium" quality when I exported them.  I can send you better quality but I should not post them as they take up too much space on forum.

I checked my notes.  Bought from a Vienna dealer in 2010.  He said 1st c AD and from an old Viennese collection.  Unlike some dealers I trust him when he says this as he does not say it for most items.  It was part of a collection of about a dozen lamps thoug this was the only volute type - most were Hellenistic or Byzantine.  However, "old Viennese collection" can be anything from 1970s or earlier.

The lamp is 90 mm long, 66 mm wide and 31 mm tall.  The volute is 40 mm wide.   The central medallion is 50 mm in diameter.  The reverse circle is 37 m diameter.  It weights 49.58 grams.

Shawn

[Strobilus]

Thanks for the new images, Shawn. These show far more detail. The details and fabric visible (particularly in the images of the underside) are unlike those typical of the Bulgarian fakes but very closely correspond with genuinely ancient lamps of its type.

I now see no reason to doubt that your lamp is indeed from the Roman period and was made in the second half of the 1st Century AD. It was almost certainly produced in Europe but I am currently unable to place its manufacture to a specific province.

[SC]

Thanks David.

I appreciate your response and am extra glad that the news was good as to originality.  It is too bad that the provncial origin is ambiguous but that is life.  It is my only lamp (leaving aside a couple of fragments and the tourist reproducctions I buy at site gift shops when available) and it actually comprises part of my collection of Roman eagles  - figures, rings, etc.

I think this experience with the photo shows that my idea of saving a bit of time by using the camera on my macbook is not/not worth the effort when it comes to photographing coins and objects. 

I will re-take images of some of the other items I loaded to my gallery too.

Shawn