Bertolami Fine Art - Piazza Lovatelli 1, 00186 Roma
ASTA 267 - GLITTICA ASTA 267 - GLITTICA
Friday 7 July 2023 hours 12:30 (UTC +00:00)
A FINE ROMAN CARNELIAN INTAGLIO SET IN A MODERN GOLD RING. JASON AND THE GOLDEN FLEECE.
A FINE ROMAN CARNELIAN INTAGLIO SET IN A MODERN GOLD RING. JASON AND THE GOLDEN FLEECE.
Early 1st century A.D.
Stone 16x21 mm; int. size 18x20 mm; 30,07 gr
The oval stone slightly convex, engraved with Jason standing before the golden fleece which hangs in a tree before him. The hero is nude but with a mantle draped over his shoulder, holding a spear and a shield, its rim resting on his shoulder, and wearing a crested helmet, one hand raised before him in a gesture of contemplation, a serpent coiled in the tree, its head raised above the fleece, and a cylindrical altar for Zeus Laphystios in the center, upon which is the head of a ram, on a groundline. Slight wear marks. The stone is set in a later modern heavy collector gold ring.
For the subject compare the carnelian gem in the Cabinet des Médailles, Paris, no. 318 in Richter, Engraved Gems of the Romans.
Provenance: From a private collection, France. The stone come from a Christie's: 5/12/ 2001 sale 9826 (Ancient Jewelry, NY).