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Lamp with a female head (empress or personification)
Byzantine
Early Byzantine Period
4th-5th century A.D.
Medium/Technique
Bronze
Dimensions
Height x length: 7 x 22.4 cm (2 3/4 x 8 13/16 in.)
Credit Line
Otis Norcross Fund
Accession Number1984.222
CollectionsEurope, Ancient Greece and Rome
ClassificationsTools and equipment – Lighting devices
Catalogue Raisonné
Sculpture in Stone and Bronze (MFA), no. 113.
DescriptionLamp in the shape of a female bust, wearing elaborate headdress with drops (pearls/Pendalia) attachments. Could represent an empress or a personification, such as Good Fortune.
The lamp has a long spout and the filler hole is in the form of a flower which also functions as a handle. Rich dark patina; intact.
The lamp has a long spout and the filler hole is in the form of a flower which also functions as a handle. Rich dark patina; intact.
Provenance1984, sold by Mohammad Yeganeh (dealer; b. 1929 - d. 2012), Frankfurt, to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 13, 1984)