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Oval gem with Hermes playing the lyre
Greek
Hellenistic Period
3rd–1st century B.C.
Medium/Technique
Carnelian
Dimensions
Length: 25 mm (1 in.)
Credit Line
Henry Lillie Pierce Fund
Accession Number99.102
CollectionsJewelry, Ancient Greece and Rome
ClassificationsJewelry / Adornment – Gems
DescriptionIntaglio. Flat surface. Set in modern gold ring. Hermes, standing left, looking down. he holds a lyre in his unseen left arm, resting his right hand along the top cross bar of the instrument. The frame of the lyre has a bumped surface. Hermes wears winged sandals, a cloak fastened around his neck, and a broad-brimmed hat (petasos) also hanging down his back.
ProvenanceGeorge 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 165, 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 165, sold for £70 to W. T. Ready for Edward Perry Warren (b. 1860 – d. 1928), London; 1899, sold by Edward Perry Warren to the MFA for $16,502 [see note 2]. (Accession Date: January 1, 1899)
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 is the total price for MFA 99.101-99.119.
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 is the total price for MFA 99.101-99.119.