**First Time At Auction**

Roman, Imperial period, ca. 1st to 3rd century CE. An elegant marble sculpture depicting a woman in high relief holding carrying a basket. Standing contrapposto, the slender female is draped in the cascading folds a stola as a palla falls over her left shoulder with the other side crossing her body to be supported by the crook of her left arm. Her left hand grasps a cylindrical woven basket filled with fruit, perhaps intended as a symbol of fertility, prosperity, or abundance. The basket indicates that this figure may represent Ceres (Greek Demeter), the Roman goddess of agriculture and fertility, or Fortuna (Greek Tyche), the Roman goddess of fortune and embodiment of luck. Size: 2.8" L x 9.7" W x 10.25" H (7.1 cm x 24.6 cm x 26 cm); 12.25" H (31.1 cm) on included custom stand.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection; ex-private New Jersey, USA collection acquired in the mid-1980s; ex-Edward J. Smith collection, Weehawken, New Jersey, USA, 1970s

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#184793

Fragment of a larger piece; missing head, lower legs, hands, and peripheries of relief. Chipping to edges and surface wear with abrasions as shown, commensurate with age. Otherwise, nice remaining detail and earthen encrustations in areas. Permanently adhered to custom stand with 2 screws visible on verso of sculpture.