Inscribed Door Frame

Originally part of a door or window frame carved in the second century AD, this marble strut has been repurposed at least twice since antiquity. Sometime between 1190 and 1191, it was re-carved with an inscription naming Pope Clement III (died March 20, 1191) and the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI (succeeded to the throne June 10, 1190). In the eighteenth century, it was then used as an internal scaffold securing a base and lid to the Roman puteal (wellhead) (2006.38.1) so as to convert it into a pedestal for a statue. This, in turn, was sold by the Scottish antiquities dealer, Gavin Hamilton, to the Marquis of Shelburne, whose widely-celebrated private collection of classical sculpture was displayed at Lansdowne House in London.