Roman
A Roman wood table leg, circa 1st - 2nd century AD
Wood
Height: 72 cm
From a tripod table, of attenuated form terminating in the leg and head of a panther, with gaping jaws, protruding tongue, recessed eyes, and gnarled brow.
From a tripod table, of attenuated form terminating in the leg and head of a panther, with gaping jaws, protruding tongue, recessed eyes, and gnarled brow.
Provenance
Private collection, Switzerland, acquired in the 1980s
With Galerie Nefer, Zurich, 1990s
With Archea Ancient Art, Amsterdam, circa 2000
With Galerie Chenel, Paris, 2012
Private collection, acquired from the above
Literature
A tripod, whose name comes from the Greek meaning ‘three-footed’, is a three legged piece of furniture. As a seat or stand, the tripod is the most stable furniture construction.Tripods were often ornamental pieces of furniture used to decorate rooms of Roman villas. They formed the supports of tables, altars, and braziers. Often enormous expenses were incurred in the purchase of such furniture. They were made of wood, marble, gold, silver, bronze and sometimes enriched with the precious metals.
Carbonized examples of wooden tripod tables with zoomorphic legs have been found at Herculaneum.