A ROMAN MARBLE FUNERARY ALTAR INSCRIBED FOR CORNELIUS PRIMITIVUS, 1ST/2ND CENTURY A.D. | A Roman Marble Funerary Altar inscribed for Cornelius Primitivus

of rectangular form, the front panel finely engraved within a recessed panel with seven lines of Latin inscription reading D(is) M(anibus) / Corneli / Primitivi / C(aius) Cornelius / Felix / alumno / karissimo fecit ("To the Spirits of the Departed of Cornelius Primitivus. Caius Cornelius Felix made [this] for his most beloved ward"), a ewer carved in relief on one side, a patera on the other, the now missing lid with rounded pediment decorated with a wreath in front; front corner restored.

in the 16th Century in Rome, in a house by the Forum of Nerva (Forum Transitorium)
Palazzo Salviati, Rome, late 16th Century
Villa Giustiniani gardens, Rome, 18th Century
Villa Borghese, Giardino del Lago, Rome, prior to 1886
Christie's, New York, December 7th, 2000, no. 598, illus.
acquired at the above sale by the present owner

Jean-Jacques Boissard, Pars Romanae Urbis Topographiae & Antiquitatum, vol. V, Frankfurt, 1600, pl. 80 (https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/boissard1600bd5/0102/image)
Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, vol. VI: Inscriptiones urbis Romae latinae, part 3, Berlin, 1886, no. 16289, with list of manuscripts and successive locations in which the altar was recorded (http://arachne.uni-koeln.de/item/marbilder/4187877)
N.G. Brancato, Una componente transversale nella società romana: gli alumni. Inscriptiones latinae ad alumnos pertinentes commentariumque, Rome, 2015, no. 554

Entire corner directly to right of inscription panel restored from two pieces of marble; upper corner above restored from a separate piece of marble; chips and abrasions to edges and corners; left side of patera fragmentary; shallow chip to side carved with jug; top of altar has iron pin inside; surface weathered overall.
"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."

Epigraphers have recorded the present altar across four centuries in three of Rome's most prestigious private collections of ancient marbles. On the use and meaning of the word alumnus see C. Saviato, "L''alumnus' nell'Italia romana (appunti per una ricerca su base epigrafica," in Epigraphica, vol. 61, 1999, pp. 288-292), and H. S. Nielsen, "Alumnus. A Term of Relation Denoting Quasi-adoption," in Classica & Mediaevalia, 38, 1987, pp. 141-188