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Cameo fragment with head of Medusa
Roman
Imperial Period
2nd century A.D.
Medium/Technique
Banded agate
Dimensions
Length x width: 19.3 x 15 mm (3/4 x 9/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Burton Y. Berry in memory of Michel Chiha of Beirut
Accession Number69.1205
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsJewelry, Ancient Greece and Rome
ClassificationsJewelry / Adornment – Cameos
DescriptionBanded white agate on thin gray layer with some reddish tones in hair. Cameo in high relief. Head of Medusa turned slightly to the right in the Hellenistic “pathetic” tradition. Her face is very full and her skin smooth. The carving of her features is quite detailed: the upper and lower eyelids, pupils, nostrils, and the vertical groove between nose and mouth are visible. Her mouth is small and her lips seem slightly pursed. The hair is parted in the center and arranged in short curls framing the face. A wedge-shaped section is missing from the left side but on the right, a wing appears in the hair in low relief. Wings in the hair are typical for depictions of Medusa on both cameos and intaglios. Chipped along all edges of perimeter. Uneven back surface with small indentations of various sizes.
ProvenanceSaid to be from Syrian Antioch on MFA archival card; by date unknown: Burton Y. Berry Collection; gift to MFA from Burton Y. Berry in Memory of Michel Chiha of Beirut, October 15, 1969