Cahn’s Quarterly 1/2020

English Edition

Editorial Making Joins

Dear readers

While tidying up just recently I came across some photographs and documents relating to the history of the Cahn Gallery. I was especially touched by a photo dating from 1995. It shows my father, Herbert A. Cahn, and the then director of the University of Leipzig’s Antikenmuseum, Eberhard Paul, in one of the museum’s galleries. They are holding two groups of fragments: the upper one shows three centaurs careering to right, the lower one horses’ legs galloping over a rock to right. They were painted by , Fragments of a cup by Epiktetos are reunited after decades apart. The five fragments with the hooves of the centaurs who was active between 520 and 490 B.C. (gifted by Cahn) form an exact join with the fragments belonging to the University of Leipzig’s Antikenmuseum. and is one of the most important painters of the Pioneer Group. The fragments with the cades, were reunited. My father had acquired be kept alive and not neglected in favour of centaurs had been given to the museum by his group of fragments in the 1960s. Had he other scientific approaches in archaeology. the archaeologist and collector Edward Perry done so just a few years later, after 1970, the Warren (1860–1928) back in 1911. The oth- museum would not have been able to accept Furthermore, to my mind, the two archaeol- er, having been identified by Robert Guy as his gift – which all goes to show the absurd ogists’s interlocking hands on which the re- belonging to the same object, was gifted to outcomes to which excessive political cor- united fragments are laid out, have a pow- the museum by my father in 1995. The pho- rectness can lead. erful symbolic meaning. They are a forceful tograph documents the moment when these metaphor of how the preservation of ancient fragments, which had been separated for de- The sight of this image sparked off various cultural artefacts and works of art can be fur- thoughts, not least about the vital contribu- thered – and with it, of course, our knowledge tion made by Robert Guy, who was a friend of Antiquity – if museums and the art trade of my father and who in the last years before work hand in hand. That the various players his retirement worked for the Cahn Gallery. in the field of archaeology do not go their Only someone with an outstanding memory, separate ways, that after the discord and dif- a profound knowledge of the painters’ dis- ficulties of the past few years they find a way tinctive hands and a remarkable faculty for to join forces and work together towards the visualisation would notice that certain dis- same goals is a matter very close to my heart. crete fragments in fact belong to the same object – all the more so when they are housed in different collections. It is vital that this Eberhard Paul (left) and Herbert A. Cahn (right) at the kind of connoisseurship, which is premised Antikenmuseum of the University of Leipzig, 1995. on a broad knowledge of countless objects,

The Debate

or reprehensible is often difficult. Yet most of us would agree that when an incumbent Changing Values US president sees fit to ponder a retaliatory strike on cultural sites in Iran, a new low in By Marc Fehlmann the debasement of our civilizing principles – even by the standards of the chaotic Trump Societies revise their values all the time. Just fundamentally over the past few decades. Al- administration – has been reached. Thus the as gender-neutral toilets, flight shame and though it is said that later generations find fragility of our hard-won norms and rules is climate change have become a topic of pub- it easier to judge the deeds and mores of exposed for all to see. Not only did the leader lic debate, so the values underpinning our the past than those of the present, finding a of a major Western democracy sink, at least handling of cultural property have changed consensus over what is ethically acceptable rhetorically, to the level of the terrorists he is

CQ 1 Cahn’s Quarterly 1/2020

ing by Melchior Berri (1801–1854) on St. Al- ban-Graben as premises for the new museum, which opened in 1966.

At a time when Ancient Greece was held up as an ideal for humanity to follow, contrasting sharply with that posited by the Nazi dictator- ship, the ability and willingness of collectors, dealers and archaeologists to work hand in hand was truly serendipitous. The neo-hu- manist image of Antiquity cultivated since the days of Humboldt and taught in ’s gram- mar schools could now be conveyed through real, tangible objects. This Hellenism was un- controversial and hence a welcome source of moral and ethical ideals at a time when the Cold War was an ever present threat and the atrocities of the Second World War still with- in living memory. Scarcely anyone gave any serious thought to the negative consequences that might ensue if archaeological materials were to be removed from their find context without proper documentation and thereafter appreciated solely on grounds of their aes- thetic qualities and cultural significance. The conviction that the publication of a newly dis- Fig. 1: The President of the Swiss Confederaton, Dr. Max Petitpierre, and his family visit the exhibition “Masterpieces of Greek Art”, accompanied by Prof. Dr. Karl Schefold, 22.9.1960. Staatsarchiv Basel-Stadt, BSL 1013 2-1387 1 covered object, and hence its inclusion in the (Photograph by Hans Bertolf) total body of knowledge of Antiquity, would be sufficient to satisfy any moral obligation, purporting to fight, but by doing so he rela- scholars and dealers who were to dedicate their must undoubtedly also have been a factor. tivized previous breaches of civilisation, such lives to the study of Classical Antiquity. The politically motivated sense of justice that as those that took place during the Second most Western societies are now steeped in, World War and the destruction of the Buddhas The antiquities market of the 1950s and 1960s moreover, was not especially widespread back of Bamiyan. So egregious are those two ex- was exceptionally buoyant. The auctions of then. Standards generally were very different amples that they easily overshadow the quiet Münzen und Medaillen AG in Basel and Ars from those of today – and that in many re- but steady change in values that has taken Antiqua AG in were major interna- spects. The shooting of a rhinoceros as a ca- place over the past few decades, also on the tional events that attracted wares of a qual- thartic experience, as in the film adaptation antiquities market. Nonetheless, seventy-five ity and quantity that these days even the big of The Snows of Kilimanjaro starring Susan years after the end of the Second World War auction houses in London and New York can Hayward (1917–1975), would be unthinkable and sixty years after the now legendary Basel scarcely match. That was the fertile soil on in today’s Hollywood. Hence we can also as- show, Masterpieces of Greek Art, it is worth which a remarkable combination of gener- sume that the dealers and collectors of an- reviewing the shifts and upheavals affecting al interest in Classical Antiquity, purchasing tiquities of the 1950s and 1960s were largely the trade in ancient art and the practice of power and academic inquiry was able to flour- insensitive of the long-term consequences of collecting Classical antiquities. ish. A network of dealers, collectors and schol- loss of context and of those breaches of na- ars emerged and delivered powerful visual tional law that enabled certain finds to leave Having been spared the descent into barbarism proof of its potency and vigour in a spectacu- their country of origin. Yet the Kingdom of brought on by the Second World War, Switzer- lar exhibition held in 1960. This was the show Greece had indeed passed a law to control and land was widely perceived as an island of bliss Masterpieces of Greek Art at Kunsthalle Basel regulate exports of Greek antiquities as early in the post-war years. It was to held in honour of Basel University’s quincen- as 1834, during the reign of Otto von Wit- that many refugees who were to play an im- tennial, which brought together some 600 ex- telsbach. The Ottoman Empire, moreover, had portant role in archaeological research and the hibits from all over Europe and the USA (fig. followed suit in 1874 with its first Antiquities trade in antiquities first fled. Among them was 1). Large numbers of them had been loaned Act for the Control and Regulation of Exports Herbert A. Cahn (1915–2002), who came to Ba- by those private collectors who would become of Antiquities and the Division of the Spoils, sel in 1933 together with his brother, Erich B. the founding fathers of the Antikenmuseum and Italy, too, had passed several laws aimed Cahn (1913–1993), Elie Borowski (1913–2003), Basel: Robert Käppeli (1900–2000), who was at curbing the uncontrolled export of anti- who reached Switzerland via France in 1940, on the CIBA board of directors from 1946 and quities, the last major amendment of which Karl Schefold (1905–1999), who emigrated to was its chairman from 1956, Samuel Schweiz- had come into force in 1939. Not all countries Switzerland in 1935 for the sake of his Jewish er (1903–1977), Director General of the were equally vigilant, however, and as the Re- wife Marianne (1906–1997), Heidi Vollmoe- Schweizerischer Bankverein and likewise on public of Cyprus did not ratify the UNESCO ller (1916–2004), whose family, fearing the the CIBA board of directors, the Basel-based Convention until 1999, archaeological finds worst, wisely moved here as early as 1928, the haulier Giovanni Züst (1887–1976) and the could still be exported from that country even Hungarian Classical philologist Karl Kerényi chemist René Clavel (1886–1969), flanked as recently as 1996, as long as the Department (1897–1973), who arrived in 1943, and Leo by Karl Schefold, Herbert A. Cahn and Peter of Antiquities had given its permission. Mildenberg (1913–2001), who reached Swit- Zschokke (1898–1986), a liberal politician and zerland only in 1947. Post-war Switzerland member of Basel’s executive council. It was he Ever since 1997 when Britain’s Channel 4 thus became home to a group of outstanding who made available the Neoclassical build- aired a whistleblowing documentary on an-

2 CQ Cahn’s Quarterly 1/2020 tiquities trafficking and its links to London’s My Choice auction houses, the whole business has been systematically tarred with the same brush. No serious dealer or collector these days would dare acquire objects without a proper- ly documented provenance that predates the A Miniature Hydria UNESCO Convention of 1970. Irrwege. Antike auf der Rückreise, an exhibition staged by By Jean-David Cahn our courageous colleagues in in 2001, which specifically set out to clarify the ar- chaeological origin of numerous items and to Quite some time has expose the damage done by the illegal ex- elapsed since I last se- cavations in Francavilla Marittima, was both lected an Attic vase for successful and salutary in this respect. Yet this column; but the while it certainly heightened awareness of moment I held this lit- just how problematic such rogue excavations tle masterpiece in my are, it also cast a pall of shame on collecting hands – an exceptional- itself. The opprobrium has become so acute ly finely crafted minia- that in their annual reports, some museums ture hydria near to the only publish items from old collections be- Shuvalov painter – I queathed to them in the form of lists and knew that here was an prefer to illustrate them with pictures of dis- object that warranted tant galaxies than with images of the objects special mention. The themselves. This can be read as a gauge of scene shows a richly just how greatly museums and scholars have clad woman sitting on a distanced themselves from the trade and pri- klismos. Wearing an ex- vate collectors, and of the dominance of new pression of impatience, categories of moral values alongside shame. she extends her right The UNESCO Convention of 1970 was sup- hand imperiously. A posed to lay down clear rules and, like Swit- young woman rushes in zerland’s Cultural Property Transfer Act of from left to answer her 2005, a certain degree of legal security. The bidding, her fluttering more conscious we are of our responsibility robe and the diagonal and values and how important they are, the lines of her finely pleat- more effectively we can integrate them into ed chiton accentuating everything we do. The more we live these her haste. To judge by values in practice, the more positively the her small stature and tradition of collecting Classical antiquities short bob haircut, she is will once again be perceived. probably a maidservant. MINIATURE HYDRIA NEAR TO THE SHUVALOV PAINTER. H. 14.5 cm. Clay. With an animated ges- Greek, Attic, ca. 430-420 B.C. CHF 28,000 ture she holds aloft the object her mistress on the one hand and a certain stiffness on has been demanding so vehemently, which the other. It seems to me entirely possible is barely visible to us. that this could be a work of the painter’s old age – possibly even of the Shuvalov painter What fascinates me most is the painter’s abil- himself. Apart from a small restoration on ity to fashion a whole story out of these few the rim, the vessel is intact. Also noteworthy narrative fragments. We would so much like is the red lacquer seal on the underside of to know what it is that the maidservant has the foot attesting to the vase’s provenance forgotten – a necklace or a veil perhaps? – from the Regno delle Due Sicilie that was and why her mistress needs this object so ur- reigned by the Bourbon kings between 1816 gently. With the aid of a magnifying glass, the and 1861. discerning viewer can discover many an ex- Marc Fehlmann FRSA studied Classi- citing detail: for example the serpent bracelet cal Archaeology, Art History and Muse- that the seated figure wears on her left wrist, um Studies at the Universities of Basel, which although no more than a curved line is and London. He was keeper at instantly recognizable as an identifiable item the Kunstmuseum Bern and taught at of jewellery; or the maidservant’s footwear: the Universities of Zurich, Oxford and on her right foot she is wearing a sandal Famagusta. He was Senior Fellow at the rendered as carefully painted-on red parallel Collegium Budapest, Director of the Mu- lines, whereas no such lines are apparent on seum Oskar Reinhart, Winterthur (2012- her left foot. It is as if in her haste to obey her 15) and Director of collections at the mistress, the young woman had had no time Deutsches Historisches Museum in Ber- to put on her second sandal. lin, (2015-17). Since 2017 he has been Director of the Basel Historical Museums. The drawing as a whole is remarkable for its singular combination of meticulous routine

CQ 3 Cahn’s Quarterly 1/2020

Discovered for you Himation, Chlamys and Chiton

A Foray into the World of Greek Garments (Part 1)

By Gerburg Ludwig

Figs. 1-2: RED-FIGURE NECK AMPHORA, ATTRIBUTED TO THE DINOS PAINTER. H. 45 cm. Clay. Attic, ca. 430-420 B.C. CHF 96,000

The impulse to judge people and their social pattern books for contemporary artists. The (figs. 1–2) shows a scene that recurs on a status by the clothes they wear was, and still larger historical and artistic context of such great number of vases: the warrior’s farewell. is, a very human one. In his novella Kleider works was barely heeded. Yet as P. Zitzl- A young man with sword and lance gives his machen Leute, Gottfried Keller embarked on a sperger recently explained, taking the Roman hand to the older man on his proper right, who comical investigation of this tendency of ours, statue of Artemis Braschi from the Glypto- is presumably his father. The young woman and the proverb “clothes make the man" that thek in Munich as an example, such a wider on his proper left, his wife or sister, invokes Keller chose as his title has remained a popular critical purview is actually very important. the favour and protection of the gods with saying to this day. Zitzlsperger observed that the sculptor of that an offering poured from a phiale. The reverse work had modelled both drapery and coiffure shows three so-called draped youths engaged Viewing the clothes depicted on original an- on Greek originals that were some 400 years in conversation, which is another canonical tiquities, two questions spring to mind: Do older, and concluded: “It is unlikely that they theme on vases and perhaps a reference to the they reflect reality or do they rather show an [people in Antiquity] were dressed complete- young warrior’s training at the palaestra. ideal, especially in the case of mythological ly differently. But works of art rarely provide themes? And secondly, how close to reality reliable information as to when which items Here we encounter several typical garments: is the image we now have of ancient attire, of clothing were worn. They are, as it were, the himation, a long mantle that at first was which after all was influenced by the sartorial but a dark mirror of past realities.” (P. Zitzl- worn only by men, and the chlamys, a short tastes of the Renaissance and the Enlighten- sperger, Antike Kleiderdarstellungen, in: Cat. cape often combined with the petasos, a ment? Costume research, which emerged as a Munich 2017, 15). broad-brimmed hat frequently worn by trav- discipline in the seventeenth century, viewed ellers. We shall discuss the peplos, which is original antiquities as an exact reflection of A neck amphora with sophisticated twist- what the young woman is wearing, in the ancient clothing and hence adopted them in ed handles now on offer at the Cahn Gallery next issue on women’s dress.

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weights at the corners, the ends of man wishing to don a chlamys pinned togeth- the cloth worn by the older man cas- er the rectangular length of cloth with a fibula cade down off his body. The gnarled or pin on the right shoulder. This is how the staff underscores his dignified image garment is worn, draped over a short chiton, as a citizen. The length of the hima- by the statuette of a youth sitting on a rock at tion and how it was draped varied the Cahn Gallery (fig. 4). The right arm thus over the years, depending on func- has sufficient room to move, which is why it tional factors, the occasion, and the was above all young men (ephebes), warriors, age and social status of the wear- hunters and travellers who wore these wool- er. Some vase paintings show men len garments, sometimes dyed or embroidered. wearing only a himation. Whether Jutting up from behind the shoulder of our in reality they would always have warrior is the broad brim of a petasos slung worn some sort of undergarment round his neck on a string. This flat felt hat of underneath is unclear. Thessalian origin was used from the Archaic Period onwards. Hermes, Theseus and Perseus Likewise with the chiton (Semitic count among the most prominent wearers of linen), which was sewn or pinned this combination of chlamys and petasos. together out of rectangular lengths of fine fabric (e.g. pleated linen) or The originals shown here lead us not into the wool, sometimes dyed in bright col- realm of mythology, but are more like snap- ours, with openings for the arms and shots of life in Antiquity. Since such scenes head or with sleeves. This garment are repeated in other originals, too, comparing came from Ionia, where as a result them can help us arrive at a realistic recon- of the orientalising influence it was struction of the clothing worn in Antiquity. made in exceptionally high quality. The “puzzle” posed by the figures depicted, It is mentioned in Homer’s epics and their body language and details of their cloth- was initially worn only by men. The ing and attributes together form a whole pic- chiton proved extremely versatile ture. Depending on the artist’s taste and un- over the centuries. It could be worn derstanding of his subject, however, there may as the need arose, either with a girdle indeed be a touch of idealisation at work in (with a fold of cloth draped over it) such pieces, as in the case of our warrior. or without, either short (as a chiton- Bibliography: E. Baumgartner et al., DivineXDesign. Das iskos for children or as hunter’s or Kleid der Antike, Cat. Munich 2017. M. Harlow (ed.), A worker’s garb) or long (later only for Cultural History of Dress and Fashion in Antiquity (Lon- priests, actors and musicians). There don/New York 2017). were also significant regional varia- tions affecting the quality, quantity and pattern of the material and the use of decorative borders.

The robed statue of a man on of- fer at the Cahn Gallery also has an arm slung into the loop-like neck Fig.3: ROBED STATUE. H.163 cm. Marble. Hellenistic, Asia Minor, opening of the himation in which ca. 150–100 B.C. Price on request he is wrapped (fig. 3). Short-lived fashion trends in today’s sense were The older man and the draped youths are all unknown to the Ancient Greeks. His left hand wearing a himation. Initially made of coarse, gathers up the cloth to expose the fine folds later of finer, material, this garment mentioned of the chiton underneath. Fascinatingly, the by Homer was one of the main items of cloth- sculptor succeeds in showing us the vertical Fig. 4: SEATED YOUTH. H. 10.5 cm. Clay, white paint. ing for men from the Archaic to the Hellenistic folds of the belted chiton worn underneath Greek, Boeotia, 3rd cent. B.C. CHF 2,600 Period. The rectangular cloth was draped – in the himation. Both drapery and posture lend places overlapping and even folded over – the wearer a dignified appearance. Statues Imprint from the left shoulder and then wound round with such luxurious attire are especially typi- Publisher Gerburg Ludwig the body back to the same shoulder. The old- cal of Hellenistic Asia Minor. Set up in a pub- Jean-David Cahn Yvonne Yiu er man’s right shoulder and arm are left bare, lic space (the agora or a theatre), they hon- Malzgasse 23 CH-4052 Basel Translations while his draped left arm clamps the length of oured the gift of a wealthy citizen or served www.cahn.ch Bronwen Saunders cloth in place. The outermost draped youths such a citizen as self-advertisement. ISSN 2624-6368 on the reverse are similarly clad, even if their Photos Editors Robert Bayer covered left hands are not shown. Their com- But back to the young warrior on the amphora: Jean-David Cahn Niklaus Bürgin panion in the middle is completely enveloped He is wearing a chlamys, a short cape draped Yvonne Yiu Ulrike Haase in his himation and holds his arm slung into loosely from the left shoulder across the back Authors Design and Layout the folded-down neck opening. The play of to the right lower arm that underscores the Jean-David Cahn Michael Joos folds and outlines vary depending on the warrior’s ideal of nudity – which to the an- Marc Fehlmann shape of the figure and the fall and texture cients was an expression of male beauty, even Ulrike Haase Printer Detlev Kreikenbom Rösch Printservice GmbH of the fabric. Weighted with drop-shaped lead though it was scarcely practised in public. A

CQ 5 Cahn’s Quarterly 1/2020

Captured Moments New Artworks Monthly on www.cahn.ch

A RED-FIGURE CALYX KRATER, ATTRIBUTED TO THE NIOBID PAINTER. H. 26 cm. Clay. This medium-sized, thick-rimmed krater with short, upturned handles, stands on a double profiled foot with convex ring. Side A shows a warrior departing for battle: At the left edge AN ATTIC RED-FIGURE LEKYTHOS, ATTRIBUTED TO is a woman facing right, clad in a floral chiton and THE BRYGOS PAINTER. H. 32.5 cm. Clay. The lekythos himation with a fillet in her hair, holding an oinochoe shows a bearded man in profile playing a kithara and in her hand. Facing her in the middle is a warrior in full singing. He wears a chiton which reaches to his ankles armour with Attic helmet, lance and large round shield and a voluminous mantle draped over his shoulders facing left, holding a phiale for the parting libation in that terminates in sharp corners. His head is thrown his right hand. Unusually, a shield apron drapes down back lustily and his mouth is wide open in song. Sing- from the middle of the outside of his shield. The Doric ers were frequently shown with this dramatic head po- column between the two figures partially obscures the sition which signalled enthousiasmos (or divine inspi- phiale. Behind the warrior is the bearded master of the ration). The singer cradles a kithara in his left hand and house with cloak and sceptre, facing left. Side B shows a plectrum with which to strum it in his right. Apart another valedictory scene: The woman at left wearing a from subsidiary ornament in the form of stopt mae- chiton and cloak is handing a phiale to the man facing anders and shoulder palmettes, the vase is unadorned. her at right, a warrior with pilos helmet leaning on a Slender neck and vertical looped handle. Foot and top staff. Overhanging the two scenes is a moulded ledge side of the mouth in reserve. Red-figure lekythoi – a with a band of ovolos followed by a band of ivy in tendrils, some with lotus flowers. Reassembled; han- specialized shape used to pour libations – attributed black, both finely framed, above it. Adorning the out- dle restored; foot not original; a fragment on the rim to the Brygos Painter are comparatively rare. Firing side of the step defining the shoulder of the vessel is restored; surface losses refilled. Formerly private coll., irregularities. Surface worn in areas. Formerly Coll. a frieze of double, right-facing maeanders interrupted Paris, before 1970. Thereafter Auction Pierre Bergé, Wladimir Rosenbaum (Serodine), Ascona, Switzerland, by crossed tiles. Above the handles on either side are 27.1.2009, lot 351. Thereafter Royal-Athena Galleries, 1970s. Thereafter Coll. James Stirt, Switzerland, 1999. two palmettes leading into elaborate, volute-like coiled New York, 2010. Attic, ca. 450–440 B.C. CHF 74,000 Thereafter priv. coll. Attic, ca. 480 B.C. CHF 38,000

A FRAGMENT OF A BLACK-FIGURE COLUMN KRATER. L. 22.8 cm. Clay. Fragment from the rim of a black-fig- ure column krater. On the reserved upper surface of the rim a lion and a boar confront each other. The rest of the rim was probably adorned with further animal pairs. The outside of the rim is decorated with two ivy chains separated by a thin band. The interior of the krater is glazed black. Some surface losses filled in, neck area and paws of the lion retouched in paint. Formerly priv. coll. G. J., , acquired 5.4.1986 from Roswitha Eberwein, Antike Kunst Göttingen. Attic, last quarter of 6th cent. B.C. CHF 3,400

6 CQ Cahn’s Quarterly 1/2020

A YOUTHFUL HEAD. H. 7.7 cm. Terracotta. Expressive- A PAIR OF STATUETTES OF ROBED CHILDREN. 9.1 cm A COMIC ACTOR, POSSIBLY A COOK. H. 8.7 cm. Bronze ly modelled, gender non-specific face. The lower part of and 9.6 cm. Clay. This matching pair of small statuettes (solid cast). The figure wears a grotesque mask, a short, a cap or helmet-like headgear has been preserved. Plas- depicts two very young children, girl and boy, each sim- sleeveless, belted garment, a padded doublet, long, tically applied strands of hair are visible below the left ilarly wrapped in a long cloak drawn tightly about the close-fitting trousers and a phallus and can therefore temple. The wide-open eyes are framed by pronounced body, its upper folds clasped at chest level in both hands, be identified as an actor from Old Comedy. Wide-open lids. Incised iris and pupil. Pronounced philtrum. The the feet exposed. The figures, clearly cast from the same eyes, pronounced lids, broad nose and pointed beard. mouth with full lips is slightly opened, revealing the mould, are differentiated in sex only by their coiffures. The characteristic mouth opening is rendered by a two upper middle incisors. Interior hollow. The head The girl's long, luxuriant locks, whose modelling was broad groove. A wreath on his head. His right arm is was made using a mould, but the details are hand-mod- finished by hand, are topped with a diadem. The boy’s outstretched whereas the left is angled and raised. He elled using a modelling stick. Reddish, pink and light hair is braided along the top of his head, a hairstyle originally balanced objects in his hands that were at- blue traces of paint. Formerly with Jean Mikas (dealer which is characteristic of youth and common to depic- tached by rivets. They may have been vessels, suggest- and collector), Paris, prior to 1960. Thereafter Krimitsas tions of Eros. Slight breakage, mainly to the figure of ing that the actor played the role of a cook. Phallus bro- Gallery, Paris. Western Greek, Tarentine, late 5th-4th the boy. Formerly Coll. E. S., Southern Germany. Greek, ken. Formerly Galerie Segredakis, Paris, 1970s. Greek, cent. B.C. CHF 4,800 Hellenistic, 3rd cent. B.C. CHF 8,800 4th cent. B.C. CHF 12,500

A FRAGMENT OF A SARCOPHAGUS WITH MYTHOLOGICAL SCENE (THE RAPE OF PROSERPINA). W. 58.4 cm. Mar- A PLAQUE WITH A HUNTING SCENE. H. 6 cm. Tin-plat- ble. The relief fragment shows the almost completely nude body of a female figure, viewed from behind. Her cloak ed bronze. The tin-plated surface of the plaque is offset has slipped off so that it now covers only part of her thigh and lower leg. Lying on the ground with her torso twisted from the roughly 4 mm wide frame and has four rivets slightly off axis, she uses her left arm to prop herself up, while her right arm would have been raised originally. With in its corners for attachment. The carefully engraved her head thrown back and her gaze directed upwards, she is apparently transfixed by the scene immediately above image represents a tigress rearing up in front of a tree her, her open mouth signalling a certain agitation. Her hair is tied at the nape of her neck, although two long tresses as Eros drives his spear into her belly. The engraving is have broken free and are now cascading down her shoulders. Preserved above her is the writhing end of a tail, while remarkable for its fine style and the attention lavished the lower part of a vessel of some kind can be made out just above her right foot. The type of the supine figure viewed on details such as the feathers of Eros and the leaves from behind with robes sliding off her back recurs on numerous sarcophagi whose fronts bear the abduction of Pro- of the tree. This very rare composition possibly once serpina. It is therefore highly likely that our fragment, too, comes from such a context. Premised on this analogy, the adorned a casket. Minor lacunae at the edge. Partial- point of attachment above the left lower arm might belong to a horn of plenty and the remains of a tail to the chariot ly with green patina. Formerly priv. coll., Austria, ac- drawn by serpents with which Ceres chases after her abducted daughter. Formerly priv. coll. Virginia, acquired from quired on the Vienna art market in the 1980s. Roman, The Folio Society, London, in 1986. Thence by descent. Roman, 2nd cent. A.D. CHF 38,000 2nd–4th cent. A.D. CHF 2,200

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A SILVER SNAKE. L. 15.7 cm. Silver. Detailed, writhing snake. Flat, lancet-shaped head with finely drilled eyes, slight- ly open mouth and line engravings. The body is elaborately decorated in cold work with an engraved net of lozenges as well as curved lines on the snake’s belly. The end of the tail is left smooth. Snakes played an important role in Greek mythology and related cult practices, partly because of their mysterious nature. Numerous specimens, mostly made of bronze, were found in the sanctuaries of various, especially chthonic deities, where they served as votive offerings. The production of such motifs continued until well into Roman times. Reassembled from two fragments. Formerly priv. coll. Germany, since 1980. Greek, 4th-3rd cent. B.C. CHF 12,000

AN INTAGLIO WITH HARE AND EAGLE. W. 1.5 cm. Honey-yellow carnelian with fine brown inclusions. Horizontal oval. The engraving depicts a hare and an eagle facing left. The eagle stands on the right on a A STATUETTE OF PRIAPOS. H. 2.4 cm. Gold. This intri- groundline and grabs the hare's tail with his beak. Lower cately worked figure shows the naked and bearded god edge slightly worn. Formerly Munich art market. Roman, of fertility, viewed frontally. Possibly a pendant for an 2nd–3rd cent. A.D. CHF 960 especially splendid piece of jewellery. With Galerie Nefer, Zurich, 1990. Greek, late 4th–3rd cent. B.C. CHF 6,800 AN INTAGLIO WITH ATHENA PARTHENOS. H. 1.2 cm. Agate. Upright oval. The engraving depicts the cult stat- ue of Athena Parthenos by Phidias in . In her out- stretched hand the goddess holds a Nike who is about to place a wreath on her head. In her lowered hand she holds a round shield. A snake writhes at her feet. Hôtel Drouot, Paris, 2001. Roman, 1st cent. A.D. CHF 2,600

A TETRADRACHM, ANTIOCHOS VIII EPIPHANES. Dm. max. 3 cm. Silver. Obverse: Head of Antiochos VIII wearing a diadem to right. Reverse: Zeus Urani- os standing to left holding a sceptre in his left hand and a star in his outstretched right hand. A crescent moon above his head, a lightning bundle above it. On the right: . On the left: and monogramm. The whole encircled by a laurel AN INTAGLIO WITH A GOAT. W. 1.3 cm. Chalcedony. wreath. ExcellentΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ condition. ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ Formerly Coll.ΕΠΙΦΑΝΟΥΣ A. and E. Horizontal oval. The engraving depicts a goat to left on Offermann, Cologne (1970–2012), acquired on the art a groundline. Intact. Formerly Herbert A. Cahn, Basel, market, London, ca. 1970–1980. Antioch, Seleucid Em- 1990s. Roman, 1st–2nd cent. A.D. CHF 700 pire, 121/20–113 B.C. CHF 2,600

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A CAMPANA RELIEF FRAGMENT WITH EROTES. L. max. 49.2 cm. Terracotta. Clay panel with part of a relief frieze depicting three Erotes bearing garlands of fruit on a plastically offset ground line. An egg-and-dart moulding at the top of the picture zone. Mould-made. Some surface losses. Campana reliefs are painted terracotta reliefs that decorated temples and other public buildings such as theatres and baths as well as private buildings, especially columbaria. They are named after the Italian collector Marchese Giampietro Campana (1808-1880) who first published these reliefs. The largest and most important workshops were located in and its surroundings. Formerly collection of the Swiss industrial- ist, philosopher and avid collector of antiquities Dr. Arnold Rüsch (1882–1929), Zurich. With Galerie Fischer, Lucerne, Sammlung A. Rüsch, Zürich, Griechische, Etruskische und Römische Altertümer, 1–2.9.1936, lot 89. Roman, late 1st cent. B.C.–1st half of 1st cent. A.D. CHF 35,000

A LEFT ARM OF FORTUNA HOLDING A CORNUCO- PIA. H. 16.3 cm. Marble. The garment which is held together by a circular fibula and slips off the shoulder indicates that the figure represented was female. As she A FRAGMENT OF A RELIEF WITH EROS AND A HIND. L. 29 cm. Marble. A winged Eros strides to right, his head holds a large cornucopia from which a rich array of raised, carrying a slain hind that is tied to a staff by the legs, its head dangling lifelessly. The animal is rendered very fruit emerges, there is no doubt that the statuette de- naturalistically. The hindlegs of a feline are visible in front of Eros. A moulding on the reverse. The underside and picted the goddess Fortuna. Surface of break smoothed. the short sides are roughly finished. Part of the lid of a sarcophagus with Erotes or from a balustrade. Formerly Coll. Formerly Coll. Nicolas Landau (1887–1979). Thereafter Prof. Benedict Maedlin, Basel, before 1960. Supposedly once the property of the painter Arnold Böcklin (1827–1901). priv. coll., acquired 2006, Galerie Kugel, Paris. Roman, Roman, ca. 160 A.D. CHF 8,800 2nd–3rd cent. A.D. CHF 4,800

CQ 9 Cahn’s Quarterly 1/2020

Recipe from Antiquity The Persian Bird’s Conquest

By Yvonne Yiu

bustle that ensues following his cry: “When he sings his song of dawning everybody jumps out of bed – smiths, potters, tanners, cobblers, bathmen, corn-dealers, lyre-turning shield-makers; the men put on their shoes and go out to work although it is not yet light.” (Arist., Birds 488-92). Furthermore, cocks fulfilled a number of symbolic and ritual functions, for instance as sacrificial an- imals or as love tokens from the adult male (erastes) to the younger male (eromenos). Not least, cockfighting was a very popular sport. However, the “Persian bird’s" actual con- quest, which enabled it to become the most common bird in the world with a current population estimated at around 23 billion by the FAO, paradoxically did not begin until it found a place on the dinner menu.

It is difficult to determine when, exactly, Picentine bread and sala cattabia Apiciana on A PLATE. Clay. Dm. 26 cm. Roman, 3rd-5th cent. A.D. CHF 3,200. A GRATER. Bronze. L. 14 cm. Etruscan, 5th-3rd cent. B.C. CHF 1,800. A KNIFE. Bronze, iron. L. 14.7 cm. Roman, chicken eggs and meat became a significant 1st-3rd cent. A.D. CHF 1,800. A SPOON. Silver. L. 9.5 cm. Roman, 2nd-4th cent. A.D. CHF 2,800. nutritional factor in the Mediterranean. An- drew Dalby assumes that in the course of “Those were terrible times for the Athenians. native to Southeast Asia. The earliest conclu- the Classical Period chickens rapidly sup- The fleet had been lost in the Sicilian Expe- sive evidence of domestication comes from planted the less productive goose, which dition, Lamachos was no longer, Nikias was the Bronze Age Indus Culture and dates from had been the farmyard egg-layer in Greece dead, the Lacedaemonians besieged Attica," ca. 2500-2100 B.C. By the 8th century B.C. at since prehistoric times. (Food in the Ancient the Scholiast explains, pointing out that that the latest, the domestic chicken had spread to World, 2003, 83). The Greeks may also have is why Peisetairos and Euelpides in the com- Mesopotamia, and representations of cocks on played a pioneering role in the consumption edy Birds, with which Aristophanes won the pottery and metalwork from Laconia, Rhodes of chicken meat. The research group led by second prize at the City Dionysia in 414 B.C., and Corinth attest to its presence in Greece by Lee Perry-Gal observed a marked increase decide to leave Athens and to build a city 600 B.C., well ahead of the political expansion in chicken remains in archaeological layers in the sky with the help of the birds. Thanks of the Achaemenid Empire. Nevertheless, it is from the Hellenistic Period at Levantine sites to its strategic location, Peisetairos argues, quite possible that the growth of the Persian and suggested that with the emergence of the this city with the “beautiful and great name” sphere of influence from the 6th century B.C. Hellenistic koine, in which Greek culture and Nephelokokkygia (Cloudcuckoocity) can sep- onwards contributed to the spread of this spe- language became defining factors, older ta- arate the gods from the people and block the cies of bird. In the ancient Persian faith of Zo- boos prohibiting the consumption of chicken passage of sacrificial smoke, thus starving the roastrianism, which was promoted by Darius I meat were abandoned, making it possible for gods into submission. This would restore the and his successors, the cock was considered a the domestic chicken to become an important birds to their original rule, for “it was not the sacred animal that, with its crow, dispelled the source of food. (Earliest Economic Exploita- gods but the birds who governed and reigned demons of the night and exhorted believers to tion of Chicken, PNAS 2015, doi.org/10.1073/ over men in olden times.” To prove this, he pray. Since the cock’s crow was an important pnas.1504236112). cites the example of the cock who “was the part of their daily ritual, Zoroastrians ensured first monarch and ruler of the Persians, long that there were always domestic chickens close It could be that chickens were bred on a large before all those Dariuses and Megabazuses – to their homes and considered it a particular- scale in Egypt as early as the 4th century B.C. so that in memory of that rulership he is still ly meritorious act to make a gift of cocks. (F. In his Historia animalium (6.2), Aristotle ob- called the Persian bird. That is why even now Zeuner, A History of Domesticated Animals, served: “In some cases, as in Egypt, eggs are he struts about like the Great King, wearing 1963, 443-50; I. Mason, Evolution of Domes- hatched spontaneously in the ground, by be- his headgear erect.” (483-7). ticated Animals, 1984, 298-302; F. Simoons, ing buried in dung heaps." Diodorus Siculus Eat not this Flesh, 1994, 154; Cock, in: En- amplified on this in his description of Egypt: Expressions such as the term “Persian bird” cyclopaedia Iranica, vol. 5, fasc. 8, 878-882). “And the most astonishing fact is that, by used by Aristophanes, or the variant “Persian reason of their unusual application to such cock” employed by the slightly older poet Crat- The cock’s usefulness as a timekeeper that matters, the men who have charge of poultry inus (Athenaios, Deipnosophistae 374d), re- roused the sleeper before daybreak was also and geese, in addition to producing them in flect the eastern origin of the domestic chicken valued in ancient Greece. The Greek word for the natural way known to all mankind, raise (Gallus domesticus), which is thought to have cock, alektryon, means “awakener", and Pei- them by their own hands, by virtue of a skill descended from the jungle fowl (Gallus gallus) setairos paints a vivid picture of the sudden peculiar to them, in numbers beyond telling;

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for they do not use the birds for hatching Interestingly, chicken farming appears to tbsp finely chopped dried onions and driz- the eggs, but, in effecting this themselves have depended more heavily on a wealthy zle the dressing over the salad. Sprinkle artificially by their own wit and skill in an clientele than other branches of agriculture. with snow immediately before serving. astounding manner, they are not surpassed Columella points out: “It is only worth while by the operations of nature.” (Bibliotheca to go to these expenses and to this trouble Picentine Bread historica 1.74.1). These hatcheries may have in places near the city, or in other locations (After Pliny, Naturalis historia 18.27) resembled those described by René-Antoine where the prices of hens and their produce Ferchault de Réaumur in his treatise The are high.” Similarly, he recommends fatten- Art of Hatching and Bringing Up Domestick ing “the largest birds for the more sump- Fowls, published in 1750. “These ovens,” he tuous feasts; for thus a worthy recompense noted, “which Egypt ought to be prouder of attends one’s trouble and expense.” (RR 8.4, than of her pyramids, are not buildings that 8.7). If one compares the prices listed in the, strike the eye by their loftiness.” Rather, it admittedly much later, Edict on Maximum was their length and internal structure that Prices issued in 301 A.D. by Emperor Diocle- rendered them remarkable: Numerous in- tian, it is indeed striking that chicken meat cubation chambers, each large enough for and eggs were rather expensive products. 4-5,000 eggs to be spread out on the ground The maximum price for a chicken was fixed were built along a narrow central corridor. at 60 denarii; as such it was cheaper than a Above them, in a second row of chambers, goose (unfattened 100 denarii, fattened 200 dung was burnt in order to produce the re- denarii) but significantly more expensive quired incubation temperature. (14-17). Such than pork or beef (12 resp. 8 denarii for 1 “Picenum,” Pliny notes, “still maintains its hatcheries, which are still operated in Egypt libra/326 g). An egg was priced at 1 denar- ancient reputation for making the bread today, albeit using lamps to regulate the tem- ius, the same amount as 1 libra of dessert which it was the first to invent, alica (spelt perature, have the advantage that the chicks grapes. By comparison, an unskilled worker semolina or groats) being the grain em- can be hatched without a reduction of the earned about 25 denarii per day and a skilled ployed. The flour is kept in soak for nine hens’ laying performance. (O. Thieme et al., worker received 50-75 denarii in addition to days, and is kneaded on the tenth with rai- The Oldest Hatcheries are Still in Use, in: food and lodging per day. The various chick- sin juice, in the shape of long rolls; after Aviculture-Europe, June 2012). en dishes in De re coquinaria, a compilation which it is baked in an oven in earthen of recipes attributed to the gourmet Apicius, pots until they break. This bread, how- In the Roman Empire, chickens were gen- were more likely to be intended for the law- ever, is never eaten until it has been well erally kept on a smaller scale. According to yer, who was allowed to charge 250 denarii soaked, which is mostly done in milk or Columella, writing in the 1st century A.D., for opening a case and another 1,000 denarii mulsum (wine sweetend with honey).” For “200 head are the limit which should be for pleading it. the sourdough starter mix 200 g spelt sem- acquired, as this number requires the care olina with 200 g water using your fingers of only one person, provided, however, Aliter sala cattabia Apiciana in order to inoculate the mixture with Lac- that an industrious old woman or a boy be (De re coquinaria 4.1.2) tobacillus sanfranciscensis. Ferment for set to watch over those that stray further nine days in a warm place (28-35 °C) stir- afield.” One cock was allocated to every ring occasionally. On the 10th day, make five hens. The hen houses were built fac- a dough by kneading together the start- ing south-east, equipped with perches and er, 300 g spelt flour, 100 g raisin juice (or nesting places and protected against natu- grape juice) and 1 tsp salt. Form long rolls ral enemies. The attention paid to animal and prove for several hours until doubled welfare by Columella is quite remarkable. in volume. Bake at 250 °C for 20 minutes, For instance, he recommended that dust switch off the oven and bake a further 10 and ashes should be made available for the minutes. chickens to bathe in, and that they should be allowed to roam freely during the day. Even those birds that were kept in closed precincts “should have a spacious portico to which they can go out and bask in the sun.” It is, therefore, all the more surpris- For the salad dressing, mix 1 tsp celery ing that he has no qualms about recom- seeds, 1 tbsp each of dried pennyroyal, mending brutal methods for the castration dried mint and grated ginger, a handful of of cocks using “a red-hot iron” and for fat- fresh coriander, 50 g raisins, 1 tsp honey tening hens by shutting them up in a place and 3 tbsp each of vinegar, oil and wine “which is very warm and has very little in a mortar. Soak Picentine bread in pos- light” in “narrow coops or plaited cages” ca (water with a dash of vinegar), squeeze that are so small that the birds “cannot turn out gently and line a large bowl with it. around” and force-feeding them pellets Cut 300 g fried chicken breast, 150 g Ves- made of barley-meal. (De re rustica 8.2- tine cheese (smoked goat's cheese) and 1-2 7). This “slavery of fat”, as Varro terms the cucumbers into thin slices. If you like it cramming of hens (De re rustica 3.9), had a wholly authentic, you can also pre-cook long tradition with the Romans, and it was and chop 100 g of goat’s sweetbreads. already described in a very similar manner Roast 25 g pine nuts. Place these ingredi- by Cato the Elder in the mid-2nd century ents on top of the bread, sprinkle with 2 STATUETTE OF A COCK. H. 8.3 cm. Clay. Greek, early B.C. (De agri cultura 89). 5th cent. B.C. CHF 900

CQ 11 Cahn’s Quarterly 1/2020

Highlight A Late Roman Chlamydatus

By Detlev Kreikenbom

The short tunic with long sleeves, the cloak The statuette, which originally on shoulders and back, the simple belt and measured ca. 34 cm in height and sword sling with single-bladed spatha, its hilt after being hollow-cast in bronze decorated with a twisted pattern, leave us in would have been gilded all over, no doubt: this young man belonged to the does in fact date from the 4th cen- Roman military. The cingulum or belt was an tury. The proportions of the head, especially important part of the soldier’s out- the small mouth, the uniformly fit, since it doubled as a marker of service. To convex facial surfaces, the large lose one’s belt, as might happen in the heat eyes and compact tufts of hair are of battle, was to be dishonoured. To the man characteristics that are all typical of shown here, the staff held in his right hand Constantinian portraiture, the par- would surely have seemed no less important. allels with imperial portraits of that Given the slight turn of the hand, it must period being particularly striking. have been at an angle. An ensign, standard Especially remarkable is the atten- or banner can therefore be ruled out, as they tion to detail that the artist lavished are shown bolt upright in most images. Judg- on the individual forms, such as the ing by the position and orientation, it could heavy eyelids rendered in the style have been a vitis, i.e. a grapevine like those typical of that period and the hair that feature in various representations of cen- over the forehead to which he lent turiones, for whom it was a badge of identi- a very distinctive look. While two ty. The hole in the hand, however, seems too locks seem almost to grow out of large for such a slender stick. The most likely the forehead skin itself, taper off to- explanation therefore seems to be a spear, wards the top and then flop down to which could certainly have been held in a the left, a third curl to the right of way that would fit the statuette. Since a spear them falls in the opposite direction. alone says nothing about rank, the man hold- This gives rise to a motif that recurs ing it might be a military man of any level, neither in the imperial nor in the even the emperor himself. Nor is the scroll he private portraits of the period, but holds in his other hand specific to any par- that cannot conceal a certain resem- ticular rank. Such scrolls are not uncommon blance with Alexander the Great. A on soldiers’ funerary reliefs. Perhaps the one deliberate reference to that image of held by the statuette can be identified as an military prowess par excellence thus A CHLAMYDATUS WITH SWORD. H. 24 cm. Bronze. Late Roman, officer’s commission. seems entirely conceivable. 1st third of the 4th cent. B.C. CHF 82,000

For all the many questions raised by both This raises the question of whether the stat- stands, relaxed, his slim body actively held costume and equipment, they do at least uette perhaps even shows an emperor. The erect. His slightly turned head further adds to provide reliable information on the time this answer is, however, negative. Any identi- the impression that this figure is not at all typ- bronze statuette was made. In the centuries fication with one of the obligatory portrait ical of late antique representations. This has immediately following the turn of the mil- types is ruled out by the coiffure. The cos- nothing to do with scale – or if so, then only in lennium, the equipment carried by Roman tume would also be atypical, since from Con- part; in its preserved state, the statuette meas- soldiers underwent certain changes which, stantine onwards, armour alone served as the ures 24 cm in height. It is above all a result although not immediately noticeable, were mark of an emperor, effectively supplanting of the deliberate, habitual interpretation of a certainly significant. We would expect a Ro- the tunic that was still widespread even in statuary scheme that is familiar to us from sol- man soldier of the middle Imperial Period, ca. 300 A.D. From the Constantinian period diers’ tombstones. The modelling of the piece, for example, to carry a dagger as well, which onwards, therefore, all portraits of emperors moreover, was also informed by the classicist ordinary soldiers wore on the left side of the on coins show them wearing armour. On a style of the time. This is especially evident in belt, centurions on the right. This item of statuette like this one, moreover, we might the meticulously delineated strands of hair equipment was then dropped in the course of reasonably have expected to find imperial in- and its volume, which contrasts sharply with the 3rd century. At around the same time the signia of some sort, especially the ornamen- the negation of all plasticity in representations conventional short sword was replaced by a tal chains dangling preferably from fibulae of hair in ca. 300 A.D. Also noteworthy is the long one, which as on this statuette was worn called pendilia. way the hard, angular folds of pre-Constan- on the left side of the body. To this should tinian statues have been overcome on both tu- be added the smooth, unadorned belt, which What makes this figure so appealing, however, nic and paludamentum. The unpretentiousness irrespective of rank became standard in ca. is the effortless naturalness of the pose. There of the figure thus combines with the precise 300 A.D., supplanting the buckled belts that is nothing smug about it, nor any boastful modelling to produce a harmonious work of had been widespread in the previous century. assertion of prowess. The young man simply outstanding quality.

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