拍品專文
PUBLISHED:
C. Johns, The Jewellery of Roman Britain, London and Michigan, 1996 (forthcoming)
Castle Hill comprises an earthwork which was fortified probably in the pre-Roman period and then used as the site of a Roman camp. Cf. H. St. George Gray and Harold Mattingly, 'A Hoard of Late Roman Coins found on Castle Hill, Wiveliscombe, 1946' in Proceedings of the Somersetshire Archaeological and Natural History Society for the Year 1946, XCII, 1947, pp. 65-75 for an account of a hoard of 1,139 coins found by Mr Charles Hancock on a separate occasion from the above cameo. The coins date from 270-4 to circa 388 A.D. and are now in the Somerset County Museum in Taunton.
For cameos with a similar subject, cf. M. Henig, The Content Cameos, Oxford, 1990, p. 79, nos. 142-3; W.-R. Megow, Kameen von Augustus bis Alexander Severus, Berlin, 1987, p. 243, pl. 49,4, no. A152; and O. W. Muscarella (ed.), Ancient Art: The Norbert Schimmel Collection, Mainz, 1974, no. 94 for a cameo portrait of Caracalla in the guise of Hercules.
Also, cf. M. Henig, The Antiquaries Journal, LXVI, 1986, pp. 378-380, pl. LXIVa for a Romano-British sardonyx cameo found in South Shields, Co. Durham, portraying Hercules, perhaps with the features of Caracalla and stratigraphically dated to the second or third quarter of 3rd Century A.D. "A youthful, somewhat rounded head with short curly hair and a prominent ear shown in profile to the right. Around the neck is a lion pelt signifying that the subject is Hercules. The hair is rendered as a series of bold criss-cross cuts. These virtues are to be seen especially in gems of the Severan periods [193-235 A.D.] ... and in the famous bear cameo also from South Shields (cf. M. Henig, A Corpus of Roman Engraved Gemstones from British Sites, Oxford, 1978, p. 274, pl. LIII, no. 735). The physiognomy of the South Shields Hercules is not at all unlike portraits of Caracalla as they appear on coins, especially between the years 205 and 209 before he grew a beard... Hercules was an obvious choice of identification, for his status was not only that of a god; he was also a hero". Also see the Caerleon cameo of Hercules (cf. J. D. Zienkiewicz, Roman Gems from Caerleon, Cardiff, 1987, p. 20 and; M. Henig, Corpus, op. cit., p. 273, no. 732, pl. LII).
Hercules was widely worshipped throughout the Roman Empire as a deity and was especially popular with the Roman Army because of his hero status. It is interesting to note that most of the gems found in Britain depicting Hercules come from military sites, the finest belonging to wealthy or high ranking officials.
C. Johns, The Jewellery of Roman Britain, London and Michigan, 1996 (forthcoming)
Castle Hill comprises an earthwork which was fortified probably in the pre-Roman period and then used as the site of a Roman camp. Cf. H. St. George Gray and Harold Mattingly, 'A Hoard of Late Roman Coins found on Castle Hill, Wiveliscombe, 1946' in Proceedings of the Somersetshire Archaeological and Natural History Society for the Year 1946, XCII, 1947, pp. 65-75 for an account of a hoard of 1,139 coins found by Mr Charles Hancock on a separate occasion from the above cameo. The coins date from 270-4 to circa 388 A.D. and are now in the Somerset County Museum in Taunton.
For cameos with a similar subject, cf. M. Henig, The Content Cameos, Oxford, 1990, p. 79, nos. 142-3; W.-R. Megow, Kameen von Augustus bis Alexander Severus, Berlin, 1987, p. 243, pl. 49,4, no. A152; and O. W. Muscarella (ed.), Ancient Art: The Norbert Schimmel Collection, Mainz, 1974, no. 94 for a cameo portrait of Caracalla in the guise of Hercules.
Also, cf. M. Henig, The Antiquaries Journal, LXVI, 1986, pp. 378-380, pl. LXIVa for a Romano-British sardonyx cameo found in South Shields, Co. Durham, portraying Hercules, perhaps with the features of Caracalla and stratigraphically dated to the second or third quarter of 3rd Century A.D. "A youthful, somewhat rounded head with short curly hair and a prominent ear shown in profile to the right. Around the neck is a lion pelt signifying that the subject is Hercules. The hair is rendered as a series of bold criss-cross cuts. These virtues are to be seen especially in gems of the Severan periods [193-235 A.D.] ... and in the famous bear cameo also from South Shields (cf. M. Henig, A Corpus of Roman Engraved Gemstones from British Sites, Oxford, 1978, p. 274, pl. LIII, no. 735). The physiognomy of the South Shields Hercules is not at all unlike portraits of Caracalla as they appear on coins, especially between the years 205 and 209 before he grew a beard... Hercules was an obvious choice of identification, for his status was not only that of a god; he was also a hero". Also see the Caerleon cameo of Hercules (cf. J. D. Zienkiewicz, Roman Gems from Caerleon, Cardiff, 1987, p. 20 and; M. Henig, Corpus, op. cit., p. 273, no. 732, pl. LII).
Hercules was widely worshipped throughout the Roman Empire as a deity and was especially popular with the Roman Army because of his hero status. It is interesting to note that most of the gems found in Britain depicting Hercules come from military sites, the finest belonging to wealthy or high ranking officials.