Funerary altar of P. Fundanius Velinus
- Title:
- Funerary altar of P. Fundanius Velinus
- Collection:
- Cornell Cast Collection
- Creator:
- Unknown
- Photographer:
- Alexandridis, Annetta
- Date:
- ca. 1880-1920
ca. 1st or 2nd c. CE
2008 (image)
- Site:
- Italy (original)
- Location:
- Warehouse
Italy (original) - ID Number:
- CCC_0111
- Accession Number:
- 111
- File Name:
- CCC_0111.tif
- Original Measurements:
- 114.6 (H) x 68.4 (W) x 54.2 (D) (complete altar)
- Culture:
- Roman
- Style/Period:
- Roman Imperial
- Work Type:
- casts (sculpture)
- Materials/Techniques:
- plaster cast (sculpture)
marble sculpture in relief (original) - Subject:
- Funerary monuments
- Image View Type:
- overall
- Image View Description:
- from front
- Measurement:
- 113 x 56 x 22 (maximum) (centimeters, height x width x diameter)
- Description:
- This is a partial cast of the ornately decorated funerary altar of P. Fundanius Velinus. The original, which includes an inscription on the front face that reads "P·FVNDANI·P·F·TER/VELINI" and additional decoration, is housed in the Louvre. This side face of the grave altar was cast as a stand-alone. On each of the two corners is the head of a ram with large, curled horns. A detailed floral garland consisting of bulbous buds or fruits and blooms and laurel leaves and buds is suspended between the horns of the rams. A thick ribbon is also tied around the horn of each that extends above and falls below in spirals. Between the rams' heads is a phiale in relief with a central rosette. At the bottom corners sit two sphinxes with elongated bodies split to fill two faces of the altar, full teats, and wings that end in curlicues. Each has hair that is banded at the forehead by a thick fillet and that falls in thick locks to her leonine shoulders. Between the sphinxes is a waterfowl. Along the top of the block is a molding decorated with an inscribed tongue motif; the bottom molding consists of an acanthus leaf and dart pattern atop a laurel leaf band. A partial cast of this object is included in the list of architectural objects in the 1908 cast catalog of the Metropolitan Museum. Cornell's cast of this object was perhaps included in the architectural cast collection in Lincoln Hall.
- Notes:
- Items in the Cornell Cast Collection are meant for inventory and reference purposes. Metadata may not be complete in all cases.
no. Ma 516 - Bibliography:
- Edward Robinson, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Catalogue of the Collection of Casts (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1908), 199, no. 1337
Walter Altmann, Römische Grabaltäre der Kaiserzeit (Berlin: Weidmannsche Buchhandlung, 1905), 80, no. 42, fig. 67 - Repository:
- Cornell University (current)
Paris, Louvre (original) - Collecting Program:
- Cornell Collections of Antiquities
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- The images in the Cornell Collection of Antiquities: Casts are protected by copyright, and the copyright holders are their creators, generally Cornell University Library, Annetta Alexandridis, and Verity Platt. This collection of plaster casts owned by Cornell University was photographed by Cornell University Library, Alexandridis, Platt, and Andreya L. Mihaloew from 2010-2015, with funding from a Digital Collections in Arts and Sciences Grant to Annetta Alexandridis. Cornell is providing access to the materials for research and personal use. The written permission of any copyright and other rights holders is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use that extends beyond what is authorized by fair use and other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item. Please contact Annetta Alexandridis and Verity Platt for more information about this collection, or to request permission to use these images.