CIRCA 2ND-3RD CENTURY A.D.

Details

A ROMAN PLASMA RINGSTONE WITH HARPOCRATES
CIRCA 2ND-3RD CENTURY A.D.
9/16 in. (1.4 cm.) long

Provenance

Giorgio Sangiorgi (1886-1965), Rome, acquired and brought to Switzerland, late 1930s; thence by continuous descent to the current owner.

Literature

J. Boardman and C. Wagner, Masterpieces in Miniature: Engraved Gems from Prehistory to the Present, London, 2018, p. 202, no. 188.

Special notice

This lot has been imported from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice.

Conditions of sale

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ccorsi@christies.com +44 (0) 20 7389 2607

Lot Essay

The nude youth, son of Isis and Osiris, is depicted characteristically standing with his forefinger raised to his lips. Although originally an Egyptian deity, in later times he takes on various attributes from classical deities; here he is holding a laden cornucopia, usually the attribute of Fortuna representing fertility and fecundity, in the crook of his other arm.

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