A Roman Marble Bench or Table Leg, circa 1st century A.D.

of rectangular form, carved with addorsed seated lions with tails entwined, each winged and horned with bared fangs, their foreparts in the round, the rest of their body in relief on both sides between mouldings of semicircular dentils, two mortises on top; no restorations.

French private collection, Cognac, acquired in Dijon prior to the mid 1980s
acquired by the present owner on the art market in Bordeaux

No restorations. Carvings on short sides present minor damage to extremities, including tips of ears, jaws, and nose. On long sides, bodies of beasts are abraded on wings, tails and paws. Minor chips and abrasions on both upper and lower decorative motifs. Top sawn flat in modern times.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Closely related examples missing the lions' heads in both cases are in the Sir John Soane's Museum, London, inv. no. S143 (http://collections.soane.org/object-s143, entry based on Cornelius Vermeule's unpublished notes for a catalogue of the Museum's antiquities) and in Berlin, Antikensammlung, inv. no Sk 1090. (A. Conze, Königliche Museen zu Berlin. Beschreibung der antiken Skulpturen, Berlin, 1891, p. 429, no. 1090; http://arachne.uni-koeln.de/item/objekt/107980).

Other examples are in the Museo Bardini in Florence (E. Neri Lusanna and L. Faedo, eds., Il Museo Bardini a Firenze, vol. 2, 1986, p. 202, nos. 33–34, figs. 48f.; http://arachne.uni-koeln.de/item/marbilderbestand/892889), in the church of San Crisogono in Rome (H.-U. Cain, Römische Marmorkandelaber, 1985, p. 86, pl. 5,4; http://arachne.uni-koeln.de/item/marbilderbestand/892893), and in the Villa Borghese in Rome (P. Moreno and A. Viacava, I marmi antichi della Galleria Borghese, 2003, p. 244f., no. 235, built into the base of a statue of a satyr and dolphin, inv. no. CC; https://goo.gl/images/NJDxhw).