3-095-448 - "Royal Academy of Arts, London; photographer: Paul Highnam"/Heritage Images

Cast of front and side of an un-inscribed cinerarium, late 18th or early 19th century. The cast reproduces a cinerarium or cinerary urn of the first half of the first century AD/CE. It is now in the Galleria dei Candelabri, Vatican Museum. The name of the deceased was probably painted on the panel. The front and sides show motifs typical of Roman funerary art, including horned rams' heads. The natural bounty and festivity of the garland suggest a special sacred moment. The torch at the back also indicates a special occasion and the darkness of the underworld. The hungry birds, representatives of oblivious and needy nature, are also commonplace. This cast was probably part of the collection of Thomas Lawrence sold at auction on 10 May 1830.