GALLO-ROMAN RING BEARING A WISH OF PROSPERITY

Gold ring with a square-section hoop made of sheet metal. The hoop terminates in coiled, round-section wires and globules supporting an oval bezel with a flat base and a collet-set agate intaglio depicting a sow with four teats facing left. Encircling the collet is a flat gold border framed by twisted wire. The ring shows age-related wear but remains in good, wearable condition.

Provenance:

‘“Ex Coll. Sevigné”

Literature:

Following the Roman conquest of Gaul (modern France) and later Britain in the 1st century BC, gradual integration into the Roman Empire took place under Emperor Augustus (r. 27 BC–14 AD). Over subsequent centuries, Roman cultural traditions merged with local customs and artistic practices. Gallo-Roman jewelry, particularly during the Late Roman period (3rd–4th century AD), became increasingly elaborate and frequently employed filigree wirework and granulation. The present ring may be assigned to Type 4 of Gallo-Roman rings according to the classification by Hélène Guiraud (Intailles et camées de l’époque romaine en Gaule, Paris 1988, p. 81). Closely related examples are also known from Britain and Germany (Catherine Johns, The Jewellery of Roman Britain: Celtic and Classical Traditions, London 1996, pp. 50–53).

For the decorative and intricate use of wirework on rings during the 3rd–4th century AD, see Catherine Johns and Timothy Potter, The Thetford Treasure: Roman Jewellery and Silver, London 1983, pp. 86–91, cat. nos. 10–14; and Lucia Pirzio Biroli Stefanelli, L’oro dei Romani: Gioielli di età Imperiale, Rome 1992, pp. 7, 82, 203. Of particular relevance are the elaborate filigree rings from the Thetford Treasure in the British Museum, which are thought to have been produced either in Gaul or by Gallic craftsmen.

The depiction of boars and sows—sometimes accompanied by piglets—on ancient intaglios can be traced back to Phoenician art of the 5th century BC and continued as a recurring motif in Greek and Roman iconography. The pig was associated with the Greek goddess Demeter (Roman Ceres), deity of harvest, agriculture, and fertility. The sow depicted on this intaglio, shown with pronounced teats, has been interpreted as a symbol of fertility and prosperity, expressing a wish for abundance bestowed upon the wearer. For further discussion, see Idit Sagiv, Representations of Animals on Greek and Roman Engraved Gems: Meanings and Interpretations, Oxford 2018, pp. 84–87.

R-1105