footnote: A Roman Funerary URN with Oak Leaves and Acorns (1st Cent CE)

[Ron Janoff]

ciao, all!

I was in Baltimore at a languages conference over the weekend and (re-)-visited the splendid Greek and Roman galleries at the Walters Museum of Art there...

There was a large funerary urn from the first century CE, said to be from Rome, very intact.

It has exquisitely carved oak leaves and acorns on it, plus the head of Zeus/Ammon, complete with horns.

Thought you might like to see the ancient treatment of this GCT/Vanderbilt motif. Note that Walters acquired it in -- yeah -- 1903.

"The name of the deceased, Novia Clara, appears on the front of this urn. The two handles are each in the form of a mask of Zeus-Ammon, the Hellenistic version of the powerful Egyptian god Amen, whose ram-horns curl around his ears. The lid preserves the lead clamps used to secure it to the vase."

"This carved marble funerary urn was made for a Roman lady named Novia Clara. The urn is empty; no ashes or contents remain. Diam: 10 5/8 x H: 20 1/4 x W: 14 The urn was heavily restored in the past, prior to acquisition by Henry Walters in 1903. The base or foot of the urn is a carved marble restoration. The marble knop on the lid is a restoration but it appears to be from another marble vessel. The surviving Roman fragments were assembled using metal staples or cramps, work which was probably done in the 19th century. The old structural repairs, while employing methods and materials we would not choose today, remain stable and do not require redoing. The surface was cleaned in 1961 and again in 2001. In 2001, fills and inpainting of losses on the surface were redone using reversible, conservation-quality acrylic materials."

best,

Ron J

--

Ron Janoff, Ph.D.

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