finger-ring
- Museum number
- 1865,0712.59
- Description
-
Gold ring engraved with figures of Aphrodite and Eros. This massive, elegant ring has a flat oval bezel and a hoop of rounded diamond-shaped cross-section. The design on the bezel, which is mainly, if not entirely engraved, shows a naked Aphrodite leaning against a small, fluted pillar on the top of which are her clothes. She wears a simple necklace, bracelets and anklets. A bird rests on the back of her outstretched hand. On the right a tiny Eros reaches up with a wreath. There is a plain ground line. The ring appears to have been hammered from a single piece of gold and there are occasional platinum-group metal inclusions.
- Production date
- 350BC (circa)
- Dimensions
-
Diameter: 1.60 centimetres (inner)
-
Diameter: 2.10 centimetres
-
Length: 2.10 centimetres (bezel)
-
Weight: 15.94 grammes
- Curator's comments
- Williams and Ogden 1994
The ease and grace of Aphrodite's pose compares well with that of a draped Aphrodite on a ring of the same shape in Taranto.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: BMCR 58; Richter EGGE, no. 251; Boardman GGFR, p. 224, pl. 736 (shape vm, Salting Group). Taranto ring: Taranto, no. 207.
- Location
- On display (G20/dc2)
- Acquisition date
- 1865
- Department
- Greek and Roman
- Registration number
- 1865,0712.59