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Oval gem with the head of Sirius (the Dog Star)
Roman
Republican or Early Imperial Period
about 100 B.C.
Medium/Technique
Garnet
Dimensions
Overall: 2.1 x 1.5 cm (13/16 x 9/16 in.)
Credit Line
Bartlett Collection—Museum purchase with funds from the Francis Bartlett Donation of 1912
Accession Number27.734
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsJewelry, Ancient Greece and Rome
ClassificationsJewelry / Adornment – Gems
Catalogue Raisonné
Lewes House Gems, no. 114 (1920; 2002).
DescriptionStrongly convex intaglio in gold setting with ring. Sirius. Head and shoulders of a dog frontal. Around the body, a collar inscribed with artist's signature in Greek ["Gaios epoiei"].
ProvenanceJohn Stanhope (b. 1705 - d. 1748); by bequest to Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield (b. 1694 - d. 1773); William Ponsonby, 2nd Earl of Bessborough (b. 1704 – d. 1793), London; George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough (b. 1739 – d. 1817), Blenheim Palace; by descent within the family to John Winston Spencer-Churchill (b. 1822 – d. 1883), 7th Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace [see note 1]; June 28-July 1, 1875, Marlborough Gems sale, Christie, Manson and Woods, London, lot 293, collection sold en bloc for £35,000 to David Bromilow (b. 1809 – d. 1898), Bitteswell Hall, Lutterworth; 1898, by descent to his daughter, Julia Harriet Mary Jary; June 26, 1899, sold by Mrs. Jary, Marlborough Gems sale, Christie, Manson and Woods, London, lot 293, sold for £110 to W. T. Ready for Edward Perry Warren (b. 1860 – d. 1928), London; April 5, 1926, lent by Edward Perry Warren to the MFA; 1927, sold by Edward Perry Warren to the MFA for $161,000 [see note 3]. (Accession Date: November 17, 1927)
NOTES:
[1] On the history of the Marlborough Gem collection, see the introduction to the 1875 Christie's auction catalogue and John Boardman, The Marlborough Gems (2010).
[2] This figure is the total price for MFA 27.647-27.761.
NOTES:
[1] On the history of the Marlborough Gem collection, see the introduction to the 1875 Christie's auction catalogue and John Boardman, The Marlborough Gems (2010).
[2] This figure is the total price for MFA 27.647-27.761.