Lot Essay
Closest to this gem is a large sardonyx in the Cabinet des Mèdailles depicting the emperor Septimius Severus and his son Caracalla, no. 579 in Richter, Engraved Gems of the Romans.
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PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE EUROPEAN COLLECTION
A ROMAN AMETHYST RINGSTONE PORTRAIT
CIRCA LATE 2ND-EARLY 3RD CENTURY A.D.
Details
A ROMAN AMETHYST RINGSTONE PORTRAIT
Circa Late 2nd-Early 3rd Century A.D.
Engraved with a bust of a male member of the Imperial family, either the young Caracalla or his brother Geta, shown in profile, wearing a mantle over a cuirass, a laurel wreath in his short hair, his beard worn short, his large eye with articulated iris and pupil
¾ in. (1.9 cm) long
Circa Late 2nd-Early 3rd Century A.D.
Engraved with a bust of a male member of the Imperial family, either the young Caracalla or his brother Geta, shown in profile, wearing a mantle over a cuirass, a laurel wreath in his short hair, his beard worn short, his large eye with articulated iris and pupil
¾ in. (1.9 cm) long
Provenance
Acquired in the 1960's-1970's