CIRCA 18TH CENTURY

Glyptic portraits of famous Roman personalities, most identifiable from surviving ancient coin portraits, were immensely popular with European collectors, who would commission sets of Emperors and triumvirs (see J. Boardman, et al., The Marlborough Gems, pp. 200-203). Related laureate portraits, likewise with a star in the field, were in the Marlborough Collection (see nos. 207 and 461.2 in Boardman, et al., op. cit.). This gem is mounted as a ring in a 19th century gold setting.