Antique Italian 18th Century Georgian Gold Cameo Ring Bust of Medusa Hardstone

A very unusual antique gold ring set with a carved brown and white hardstone cameo depicting the theatrical comic mask of Silenus, the Greek mythological old rustic god of wine-making and drunkenness. The ring was made in the late 19th century and carries French control marks for 18K gold, whilst the cameo is probably Italian and made slightly earlier, circa 1800. Silenus was a companion to the wine god Dionysus, and suitably he was a notorious consumer of wine, usually drunk and supported by satyrs or carried by a donkey. Silenus was described as the oldest, wisest and most drunken of the followers of Dionysus, and was said to possess special knowledge and the power of prophecy when intoxicated. He presides over the other satyrs and is related to musical creativity, prophetic ecstasy, drunken joy and drunken dances. Silenus was usually depicted as a jovial old man, bald yet bearded, with a pot-belly, thick lips and snub-nose. The masks worn to play him in theatre really emphasised these features, as you can see with this cameo carving Theatre was a key part of ancient Greek culture. The theatrical masks worn by the actors, known as ‘prosopon’, served various purposes. They enabled individual actors to play multiple roles (or genders) in the same performance; the exaggerated expressions helped define the character being portrayed; they helped spectators in the back rows to tell the characters apart. This particular masked as mentioned before is a comedic Silenus, please see final photo for other examples of Silenus masks in museum collections. UK size N 1/2, US size 7 4.84g 18K gold French ‘tête...

A superb ancient Roman nicolo intaglio set in a late 18th century gold signet ring. Nicolo intaglios are a particular type of intaglio ma...

A scarce late 18th century high-karat gold and emerald ring, circa 1780. This superb gold ring is set with a large faceted natural emerald gemstone, approximately 5cts in weight. T...

A large antique English Georgian era gentleman’s gold signet ring, circa 1830. In the centre there is a flat-cut and bezel-set octagonal carneli...

This rare antique late 18th century gold ring was made in France and features a painted enamel miniature of a shepherd boy holding a crook. This pastoral scene probably depicts David...

This rare Egyptian carved carnelian frog amulet dates to the Eighteenth Dynasty of the New Kingdom, circa 1300 BC. Frog amulets, depicting the goddess Heket, were commonly worn by both the living as a fertility charm and the dead to provide rejuvenation and a long afterlife. The ancient amulet is pierced horizontally and set into a later gold swivel mount, probably dating from the late 19th century. The design of the gold mount inspired by rings worn by the ancient Egyptians and Etruscans with its swivel bezel and coiled wire on the shoulders. The immense number of offspring made the frog an important symbol of fertility in ancient Egypt, and carved frog amulets were worn by women hoping for an easy delivery. This is exemplified with the goddess and protector of birth, Keket, who was depicted as a frog. After death, frog amulets would be placed within the wrappings of mummies, both men and women, in hope of a successful rebirth in the afterlife. The association between this amphibian and rebirth may have been induced by the fact that every year, millions of frogs spontaneously appeared out of the river mud and filled the fields after the annual inundation of the Nile. This caused the Egyptians to believe that they spontaneously generated themselves out of the river mud. The influence of frogs in Ancient Egypt can be seen in the language, the hieroglyphic sign for "one hundred thousand" was a tadpole, and one of the Egyptian terms denoting "frogs" is whm-anx, meaning literally "they who repeat life." Similar examples of ancient Egyptian carved...

A Georgian hardstone cameo ring, the oval-shaped cameo depicting the profile of a patrician, rub-over set within a yellow gold mount with ridged d...

The classical head facing left, clean shaven with short curling hair, in a later ring mount, ring size 8, length 30mm, width 20mm Weight : 29,4gr

The portrait head of Seneca, in a later ring mount, ring size 11 , length 27mm, width mm22 Weight:26.4gr.

The portrait head, facing right, with short hair and clean shaven, in a later ring mount, ring size 8 length 29mm, width 16mm

An extremely well carved agate Cameo depicting a Classical Greek Philosopher, originally crafted in the late Georgian Era, set in 9ct Rose Gold. The agate Cameo consist of two different coloured strata of stone the top white layer is carved and reveals the black colour agate underneath. ~Details~ ERA:Late Georgian 1830...

Cameo dipicting bearded man in agate mounted in gold. Size: 7 Weight: 3,9gr.