Roman, Imperial period, ca. 2nd century CE. A fabulous finger ring comprised of over 21 karat gold and a chalcedony cameo of a grotesque male head with exaggerated features carved with remarkable and detailed precision. Intended to ward off evil, the grotesque displays a towering, bald head crowned by a single lock of hair over deep set eyes, an arched brow line leading to a prominent aquiline nose, and full lips in a grimace. Gaping sleep lines diagonally cross his forehead, while heavy nasolabial folds flank his mouth; both of which greatly accentuating his age. Complementing the fascinating visage, the gold ring is quite elegant, composed of a round hoop, flat inside and rounded on the outside, with decorative vertical ribs along the shoulders. The hoop expands to support a large oval bezel with a border decorated in the same fashion as the ribs on the shoulders. Size of ring: 1.1" L x 1" W (2.8 cm x 2.5 cm); of cameo: 0.8" L x 0.5" W (2 cm x 1.3 cm); US ring size: 7.75; gold quality: 89 to 90% (equivalent to over 21 karats); weight: 16.3 grams

Provenance: private Boynton Beach, Florida, USA collection; ex-Apollo Art Auctions, London, UK, October 9, 2022, lot 167; ex-Robert Unger collection, London, UK; ex-London, UK gallery, acquired in the 1980s on the UK art market

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#178613

Some small nicks and scratches to gold and a few encrustations to cameo, but otherwise intact, wearable, and in overall excellent condition. Impressive preservation of detail.