Inv. n°: MMoCA608

A Greek Bronze Cuirass

Fashioned of hammered sheet, consisting of a breast-plate and back-plate, anatomical form with details in relief, ornamented in raised and incised details, including, on the front, a voluted ketos or sea-dragon curving around the contours of the pectorals, its serrated comb, fins, forked tail and scales finely incised, the lower ribcage off-set and outlined with a raised ridge terminating at each end in incised palmettes, the 'linea alba' marked by a vertical groove also terminating at each end in an incised palmette, a palmette at the top centre at the base of the flaring neck-guard; the back-plate with the curving bars at the shoulder blades each terminating above and below in an incised palmette, the lower rims flaring, the edges of the arm-holes and neck-guard rolled-in, a perforation on the front and back of each shoulder for attachment, the proper right front preserving an original iron pin.

h. 41.9 cm

Late 7th-early 6th century BC

Bronze

Provenance

  • Ex Private Collection, Zurich, Acquired prior to 1962
  • Acquired at Christie's, 9th December 2010, lot 97

Publications

  • Christie's, Antiquities Sale 2364, New York, 9th December 2010, lot 97
  • M. Burns, "Graeco-Italic Militaria" in M. Merrony (ed.), Mougins Museum of Classical Art, France, 2011, p. 190, fig. 20

Exhibitions

  • Musée d'Art Classique de Mougins (MACM), Mougins, France, from June 2011

N.B. Our online collection is being continually updated thanks to ongoing research and documentation efforts carried out by the MACM documentation team. Any additional information is welcome, please contact us.

© (MACM) Musée d’Art Classique de Mougins 2021 - 2024