CIRCA 1ST CENTURY B.C. - 2ND CENTURY A.D.

Details

FIVE ROMAN RING STONES
CIRCA 1ST CENTURY B.C. - 2ND CENTURY A.D.
13 mm. long max.

Provenance

G. Sangiorgi collection (1886-1965), Rome.
Private collection, Monaco, 1970s; thence by descent.

Special notice

These lots have been imported from outside the EU for sale using a Temporary Import regime. Import VAT is payable (at 5%) on the Hammer price. VAT is also payable (at 20%) on the buyer’s Premium on a VAT inclusive basis. When a buyer of such a lot has registered an EU address but wishes to export the lot or complete the import into another EU country, he must advise Christie's immediately after the auction.

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Lot Essay

The largest example in carnelian shows a fantastical scene with a cricket or cicada holding a wreath tied to a tall column topped by a sundial. For a similar scene with a cicada playing a double flute, cf. A. Furtwängler, Beschreibung der geschnittenen Steine im Antiquarium, Berlin, 1896, p. 239, no. 6525. Such whimsical scenes involving anthropomorphic insects are rare; for three examples engraved with cicadas holding branches over altars, cf. Furtwängler, op.cit., p. 217, no. 5852-5854; for another example depicting a cricket dancing with a lion, cf. Beazley gems database no. 651.

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