Description:

**First Time At Auction**

Roman, Republican period or earlier, ca. 4th to 1st century BCE. A mold made, ceramic votive figure of testicles. The testes themselves are molded as part of an abstract, trapezoidal shape suggesting a groin with an empty ovoid where the phallus would be if it were anatomically accurate. Comes with custom stand. Size: 3.2" W x 4.5" H (8.1 cm x 11.4 cm); height on stand: 5.45" (13.8 cm).

Ancient Italy and Greece had Asklepions, sanctuaries dedicated to Asklepios, the god of healing, where the sick and those concerned about them could travel to pray for better health. Animal sacrifices and ceramic or bronze votive offerings were made at altars within these sanctuaries. Often, these votives were in the form of disembodied, sometimes abstract, body parts. Many scholars have suggested that they represent the afflicted body parts of the ill, given to ask for healing, but that is speculative and the meaning of these evocative objects remains elusive.

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection

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#120642

  • Condition: Intact, with some encrustation.

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April 24, 2017 10:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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