A ROMAN GLASS CAMEO OF MEDUSA
A ROMAN GLASS CAMEO OF MEDUSA
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PROPERTY FROM A SWISS PRIVATE COLLECTION
A ROMAN GLASS CAMEO OF MEDUSA

CIRCA 1ST CENTURY B.C.

Details
A ROMAN GLASS CAMEO OF MEDUSA
CIRCA 1ST CENTURY B.C.
1 ½ in. (3.6 cm.) long
Provenance
Dr. Arnold Ruesch (1882-1929) collection, Zurich, Switzerland.
Swiss private collection, acquired in 1936 from the above; thence by descent.
Literature
Sammlung A. Ruesch, Zürich, Griechische, etruskische und römische Altertümer, Galerie Fischer, Luzern, 1936, p. 30, no. 283.

Brought to you by

Claudio Corsi
Claudio Corsi Specialist, Head of Department

Lot Essay

The cameo is cast from layered glass, white on black, in imitation of onyx. Medusa is shown in profile to the left, with wings in her hair and serpentine locks falling along her neck. Medusa was perhaps the most popular subject for Roman cameos, typically shown either frontally or in profile, as here. For the type, compare the onyx cameo, no. 502 in J. Boardman, et al., The Marlborough Gems.

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