Early Roman gold ring with a striped agate intaglio. 6.65 g. Dia. 27 mm.
Ca. 1st century AD.
The ring’s hoop is simple, but elegant, flaring in diameter as it attaches to the oval bezel. A row of fine granulation highlights the attachment point between hoop and bezel. The intaglio features an exceptionally engraved scene of a nude youth slightly crouching to left, holding a lowered sword. Around his head is a laurel wreath. With his left hand he seems to support himself on a tripod around which is a snake moving up the tripod leg. The tripod itself is above a cylindrical object, quite likely an altar. Undoubtedly, this is the god Apollo, who attributes include the sword and tripod. The presence of the snake is significant, and may in fact refer to the defeat to the mythical snake Python by Apollo, an event that was commemorated every four years in the Pythian Games at Delphi. If so, then the ring may bear a reference to a victory or event that took place at Delphi during the games or be a symbol of devotion to Apollo by its wearer.
