A N N U A L R E P O R T - The Ashmolean Museum

36 / Highlights of the Annual Report 2004–05
Bronze container in the form of a South
Indian temple
Tamilnadu, South India, 17 th –18 th century. H. 25 cm.
This bronze model of a South Indian Siva temple
serves, in one half, as a container of some kind,
with a hinged lid. Its other half bears the vimana
temple superstructure with figures of Siva, Parvati
and their sons Ganesa and Karttikeya at the
cardinal points, as well as bulls. This very unusual
and interesting temple model formerly belonged to
the late Dr J C Harle, who was Keeper of Eastern
Art (1967–87) and a leading authority on Indian
art and architecture.
Chalgrove II Hoard with coin of Domitianus II
4957 Roman base silver coins, from 251 to 279 AD, in a Roman grey ware jar.
Acquired for £40,000 from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, with a
contribution of £20,000 from the National Art Collections Fund and additional
support from the Headley Trust for Treasure, the V&A/MLA Purchase Grant Fund,
the Carl & Eileen Subak Family Foundation, and the Friends of the Ashmolean.
The hoard, found less than ten
miles from Oxford, contained a
truly remarkable coin of an
unknown Roman emperor of the
early 270s AD called
Domitianus. Brian Malin, who
found the hoard, brought it in to
the Ashmolean with admirable
care and promptness. The coins
were sent to the British Museum
to be separated and cleaned. An
initial sorting of the coins was
undertaken by Richard Abdy at
the British Museum, and it was
he who discovered the
Domitianus coin. The
Ashmolean is very grateful to
both of them.