Lucerne with wild boar. Rome, 1st - 3rd century A.D.

Lucerne with wild boar. Rome, 1st - 3rd century A.D.
Terracotta.
Provenance: Former private collection, Limoges, France, 1960 - 1980.
Good state of preservation.
Measurements: 9,4 cm long.

Roman Lucerne decorated with the figure of a boar in relief, a particularly suggestive motif in the Roman animalistic repertoire. The piece preserves its characteristic circular shape, with a frontal spout, a feeding hole and a smoothly molded edge that frames the central scene.

The wild boar was an animal with a strong symbolic presence in the ancient world, associated with hunting, wild strength and dominion over nature. Its image appears frequently in contexts linked to the hunting imaginary, highly appreciated by the Roman elites, but also in everyday objects such as this skylight, where the decorative motif brought character and meaning to the domestic environment.

The terracotta retains an attractive reddish hue, with traces of surface deposits that accentuate its age. The provenance of an old private collection in Limoges between 1960 and 1980 adds documentary interest to a small piece, but very representative of Roman material culture.