Provenance Information

Possibly collection of Raymond Duncan (brother of Isadora Duncan); Robert Hecht, New York, said to have been acquired from the above in the 1960s; Yale University Art Gallery, purchased from the above, 1994.

Exhibition Information

Passionate Acts in Greek Art and Myth, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, 11/19/1993–03/13/1994

Publication Information

Haiganuch Sarian, "Iconographie Classique et identités regionales," Bulletin de Correspondance Hellénique 14 (1986): 25-35; "Acquisitions, January 1994–December 1995," Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin (1995–96): 154–55, ill; Susan B. Matheson, "Hounded by Furies," Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin (1997–98): 18–29, fig. 1a–b, 2, 3.

Florence Z. Wolsky, Passionate Acts in Greek Art and Myth, exh. cat. (Boston: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Nov. 19, 1993-Mar. 13, 1994), 26–27.

Adolf Michaelis, Ancient Marbles in Great Britain (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1882), 648.

Cornelius Vermeule and Dietrich von Bothmer, "Notes on a New Edition of Michaelis: Ancient Marbles in Great Britain," American Journal of Archaeology 60 (1956): 146.;;Royal Athena Galleries, New York, Art of the Ancient World, sale cat. (1993)."

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Informed judgement that works were outside of the country of modern discovery before 1970

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

Believed to have been sold at a New York gallery in the 1960s

Provenance Information

Reportedly acquired from Paul Munro-Walker, Bornemouth, Dorset, Great Britain, by Virgilo Constantino Vecchi, Vecchi & Sons, London, in the 1960s; sold to Private Collector, Switzerland, 1972; purchased from Private Collector, Switzerland, through dealer Plektron Fine Arts A. G., Zurich, by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2017.

Exhibition Information

The cuirass was on long-term loan to, and on display at, The Museum of Art and History, Geneva, Switzerland, from 2001 to 2015. The helmet was on loan to the Glyptothek Museum, Munich, Germany, from 2005 to 2015.

Publication Information

Unpublished

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Informed judgement that works were outside of the country of modern discovery before 1970

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

This work has provenance to 1972 when it was acquired by a private collector in Switzerland who sold the work to the Metropolitan Museum. It has provenance reported to the late 1960s but the Metropolitan Museum has been unable to independently verify that information. The cuirass was on loan to the Museum of Art and History, Geneva, Switzerland, from 2001 to 2015. The helmet was on loan to the Glyptothek Museum, Munich, Germany from 2005 to 2015.
This is a one of the most distinctive and best preserved Etruscan panoplies surviving from the 5th century B.C. It would be the only complete or near-complete Etruscan armor in the Metropolitan Museum's collection. It is comprised of an exceptional helmet, a finely modeled muscle cuirass, and a single greave. The ensemble is remarkable for its topological singularities, ornamentation in silver, and overall state of preservation. Noteworthy features on the helmet include an applied silver gorgon and a bronze crest representing Pegasus. The breastplate and backplate stand out for the sensitive sculptural treatment of the anatomy.

Provenance Information

Collection of Benjamin Zucker, New York, by 1985; purchased from Mr. Zucker through Les Enluminures by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2016.

Exhibition Information

Bedazzled: 5,000 Years of Jewelry, Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville, Tenn. from Sept. 15, 2006, to Jan. 14, 2007; the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, Fla. from Feb. 18 to May 13, 2007; Walters Art Museum, October 19, 2008, to January 4, 2009.

Publication Information

Scarisbrick, Diana. 2007. Rings : Jewelry of Power, Love, and Loyalty. no. 81, p. 63, London: Thames and Hudson, London.

Hindman, Sandra, Beatriz Chadour-Sampson, Reine Hadjadj, Mr. Jack Ogden, and Diana Scarisbrick. 2014. Cycles of Life : Rings from the Benjamin Zucker Family Collection, Les Enluminures. no. 9, pp. 74–77, London: Paul Holberton Publishing.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Cumulative facts and circumstances

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

This work was placed on deposit at the Walters Art Museum from 1985 to 2013. It was displayed as part of the Walter’s traveling Bedazzled exhibition in 2007/8 and has been published twice. The Metropolitan Museum has some 25 Roman gold finger rings, mostly dated to the early imperial period. There is nothing comparable to this large and impressive Late Roman ring. It is significant not only in terms of its bulk but also for its use as a betrothal or wedding ring—a tradition that only became firmly established in the 3rd century A.D. It is a welcome addition to the Metropolitan Museum’s holdings of ancient jewelry.

Provenance Information

[Until 1983, with The Merrin Gallery, Inc., New York]; 1983, purchased from Merrin Gallery by Christos G. Bastis; 1983-1999, collection of Christos G. Bastis, New York; December 9, 1999, purchased by Mary and Michael Jaharis at Sotheby’s auction of The Christos G. Bastis Collection, New York (lot 115); 1999-2012, collection of Mary and Michael Jaharis, New York; acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2012, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Michael Jaharis.

Exhibition Information

The work was exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1987 as part of the Bastis Collection. The work has been on loan to, and on display at, The Metropolitan Museum of Art since 2007.

Publication Information

von Bothmer, Dietrich, Bernard V. Bothmer, Pat Getz-Preziosi, Diana Buitron-Oliver, and Andrew Oliver, Jr. 1987. Antiquities from the Collection of Christos G. Bastis, Emma Swan Hall, ed. no. 74, pp. 158-59, Mainz on Rhine: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.

Buitron-Oliver, Diana. 1987. "Terracottas." Antiquities from the Collection of Christos G. Bastis, Emma Swan Hall, ed. no. 74, pp. 158-59, Mainz: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.

The object was also published in the auction catalogue for Sotheby’s, New York, December 9, 1999, lot 115 (illustrated).

Karoglou, Kyriaki. 2014. "Recent Acquisitions, A Selection: 2012-2014." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 72(2): p. 8.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The work was exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1987 and again from 2007 to present. The work was sold at public auction in 1999. The work was published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1987 as part of the Museum’s exhibition of the Bastis Collection and in the 1999 Sotheby’s auction catalogue. This is a rare group of South Italian terracotta figurines that functioned as a votive offering and /or an elaborate ritual implement such as an incense burner. There is – to Greek & Roman Department at The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s knowledge – no surviving parallel. The preservation of the original colors in particular is remarkable.

Provenance Information

Purchased by Mr. Christos Bastis prior to 1982; acquired by Mr. and Mrs. Michael Jaharis at the Sotheby’s New York sale “Antiquities from the Collection of the late Christos G. Bastis,” December 9, 1999, lot 114. Given by Mary and Michael Jaharis to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2013.

The work has been on loan to, and on display at, The Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1982 to 1999 and from 2007 to present. The work was also exhibited in connection with the Sotheby’s sale in 1999.

Exhibition Information

The work has been on loan to, and on display at, The Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1982 to 1999 and from 2007 to 2013. The work was also exhibited in connection with the Sotheby’s sale in 1999.

Publication Information

Buitron-Oliver, Diana. 1987. Antiquities from the Collection of Christos G. Bastis, Emma Swan Hall, ed. no. 73, pp. 156-57, Mainz: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.

Sotheby's, New York. 1999. Antiquities from the Collection of the Late Christos G. Bastis. December 9, 1999. lot 114, pp. 132-33, New York.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Gift or bequest expected or on loan prior to 2008

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The work has been publicly displayed at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on long-term loan from 1982 through 1999 and again from 2007 to 2013. The work was sold at public auction in 1999. The work has been published twice – once by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1987 as part of the Museum’s exhibition of the Bastis Collection and once in the 1999 Sotheby’s auction catalog. The work is a rare and beautiful example of a Tarentine life-size terracotta statue. It will considerably enhance the Museum’s collection of large-scale terracotta sculpture.

Provenance Information

Purportedly Piero Tozzi Gallery, New York until 1963
James Edwards, New York until 1988
Antiquarium, Ltd, 1988

Exhibition Information

On exhibition at Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center since 2008

Publication Information

Women in Ancient Art, New York Antiquarium, Ltd., 1997, p. 16

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Cumulative facts and circumstances

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

While it cannot be documented, the work is said to have been sold by Piero Tozzi Gallery in New York to James Edwards, New York in 1963 from whom it was acquired by Antiquarium, Ltd., New York. The Tozzi gallery closed in the early 1970s. It was published and illustrated by Antiquarium in 1997. This gives reasonable assurance that the work had left it country of origin by 1970.

Provenance Information

Iris C. Love, New York, by 1980. Iris Love has been collecting antiquities, particularly Greek vases and fragments, for many decades. Certain fragments are marked with dates ranging from 1969 to 1980.

Exhibition Information

None.

Publication Information

None.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Cumulative facts and circumstances

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The 27 Greek vase fragments and groups of fragments acquired as a gift from Iris Love join or belong to the same vases as fragments acquired by the Metropolitan Museum through the large study collection donated by the late Dietrich von Bothmer (TR. 572.2011). The Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities of the Italian Republic consented to the Museum accepting the Bothmer gift as a resource for research, publication and display. A major consideration in the Museum’s acceptance of the Bothmer gift was to contribute to the reunification of pieces that belong together and had become dispersed. The gift from Iris Love is consistent with this purpose. As the material is accessioned, it will become available for study.

Provenance Information

Dietrich von Bothmer was a long-time curator and scholar of Greek & Roman Art at the Museum, from 1946 until his death in 2009. Throughout his career at the Museum, he acquired Attic vase fragments which came to form a study collection. For some of the fragments, the Museum knows the date and dealer for Dr. von Bothmer’s acquisition. For others, there is no acquisition information. The collection has not yet been catalogued, however the Museum is committed to cataloguing, photographing and publishing it electronically. Once the fragments are catalogued, any known provenance will be published on the Museum’s web site.

Exhibition Information

None.

Publication Information

Most of the pieces are unpublished. The exceptions appear in Sir John Beazley’s compendia of Attic vase-painting: Attic Black-figure Vase-painters (1956), Attic Red-figure Vase-painters (2nd edition, 1963), and Paralipomena (1971). Many of the fragments by Douris are included in Diana Buitron’s monograph on the painter (Mainz, 1995). Fragments by Makron are included in Norbert Kunisch’s monograph (Mainz, 1997). Isolated works are published elsewhere.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Cumulative facts and circumstances

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The study collection assembled by Dr. von Bothmer represents over fifty years of study and expertise, and it complements the Museum’s distinguished collection of prehistoric, Greek, Etruscan, and Roman pottery. Dr. von Bothmer identified and grouped the fragments according to well-defined art historical criteria – shape, date, painter, sometimes potter, subject matter. The degree of refinement in the classification is considerable.

Though the material consists primarily of small pieces, its artistic interest resides, to a considerable degree, in the artists who are represented, including Onesimos, Epiktetos, Douris, Makron, the Brygos Painter, the Berlin Painter, the Villa Giulia Painter, and other well-known names. Still other fragments are noteworthy for details of shape or execution.

The Bothmer Fragment Collection presents a very extensive and significant range of opportunities for study among scholars world-wide, notably those expert in Greek vase-painting. In addition, it makes possible joins with pieces in other museums, particularly those with holdings acquired during the nineteenth century from the Campana Collection.

In the spirit of cooperation between the Museum and Italy, the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities of the Italian Republic consented to the Museum accepting this bequest as a resource for research, publication, and display. In its agreement with the Ministry, the Museum agreed to strive to facilitate the recomposition of original objects by donating joining fragments in the Bothmer Fragment Collection to other institutions, or, where appropriate, requesting donations to the Museum, in order to augment fragments in the Bothmer collection.

Provenance Information

By 2001, with Leu Numismatik, AG, Zürich; 2001, sold by Leu to Michael C. Ruettgers, Carlisle, MA; 2009, gift of Michael C. Ruettgers to the MFA. (Accession Date: December 16, 2009)

Exhibition Information

None known.

Publication Information

None known.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Cumulative facts and circumstances

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The date and circumstances of the coin’s discovery are not known. Gold coins of this type, while struck at Rome, circulated widely and have been found within the present-day borders of many countries. Per the MFA’s 2006 agreement with the Italian Ministry of Culture, the Museum contacted Ministry representatives prior to acquiring the coin; the Ministry raised no objection to the acquisition.

Provenance Information

1995, private collection; July 5, 1995, anonymous (private collection) sale, Sotheby’s, London, lot 154. 2002, private collection, Europe; December 5, 2002, anonymous sale (Auction 24; “property of a European Nobleman”), Numismatica Ars Classica, Zürich, lot 176. 2002 or 2003, purchased by Michael C. Ruettgers, Carlisle, MA; 2009: gift of Michael C. Ruettgers to the MFA (Accession Date: June 17, 2009)

Exhibition Information

None known.

Publication Information

X. Calicò, The Roman Aurei (Barcelona, 2003), p. 583, no. 3290.

Section of the AAMD Guidelines relied upon for the exception to 1970

Cumulative facts and circumstances

Explain why the object fits the exception set forth above

The date and circumstances of the coin’s discovery are not known. Gold coins of this type, while struck at Rome, circulated widely and have been found within the present-day borders of many countries. Per the MFA’s 2006 agreement with the Italian Ministry of Culture, the Museum contacted Ministry representatives prior to acquiring the coin; the Ministry raised no objection to the acquisition.