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18th-century gem carvers sometimes depicted ancient subjects to appeal to gem collectors with antiquarian tastes. This intaglio portrays Asclepius, Greek god of medicine and healing, in profile. Asclepius’s attribute, a serpent entwined around a rod, appears at left. The symbol, which continues to be used in medicine today, has generated different interpretations, but it could be read as a symbol of renewal, as snakes shed their skins. This gem was part of the duke of Marlborough’s famous collection in England.
Page data
- Page
- 1
- Source index
- 0
- Type
- photo
- Media ID
- ee1794ccb14a4b88
- Size
- unknown
Document data
- ID
- 40797
- Core
- obj
- Type
- object
DTO data
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"sourceUrl": "https://purl.thewalters.org/art/42.1108",
"contentType": "object",
"stage": "normalized",
"title": "Ring with Intaglio Showing Head of Asclepius",
"description": "18th-century gem carvers sometimes depicted ancient subjects to appeal to gem collectors with antiquarian tastes. This intaglio portrays Asclepius, Greek god of medicine and healing, in profile. Asclepius’s attribute, a serpent entwined around a rod, appears at left. The symbol, which continues to be used in medicine today, has generated different interpretations, but it could be read as a symbol of renewal, as snakes shed their skins. This gem was part of the duke of Marlborough’s famous collection in England.",
"provenance": "George Spencer, fourth Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, by 1817, [mode of acquisition unknown] [Marlborough no. 251]; George Spencer-Churchill, fifth Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, 1817, by bequest; George Spencer-Churchill, sixth Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, 1840, by bequest; John Spencer-Churchill, seventh Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, 1857, by bequest; Sale, The Marlborough Gems, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 28 June 1875, p. 38, lot 251; David Bromilow, Bitteswell Hall, Leicestershire, ca. 1875, by purchase; Julia Bromilow Jary, Bitteswell Hall, Leicestershire, 1898, by bequest; Sale, The Marlborough Gems Purchased by the Late David Bromilow, esq., Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 26 June 1899, p. 43, lot 251; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1899, by purchase [Dikran Kelekian as agent]; Sadie Jones (Mrs. Henry Walters), New York, 1931, by bequest; Joseph Brummer, Paris and New York, 1941, by purchase [Brummer inv. no. N5143a]; Walters Art Museum, 1942, by purchase.",
"date": "18th century",
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"dimensionsRaw": "Intaglio in gold setting H: 13/16 × W: 11/16 × D: 3/16 in. (2.1 × 1.8 × 0.4 cm); Ring H: 13/16 × W: 3/4 × D: 13/16 in. (2.1 × 1.9 × 2.1 cm)"
}
Context sent to Scholar
Document identity
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"label": "Ring with Intaglio Showing Head of Asclepius",
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"citationUrl": "https://purl.thewalters.org/art/42.1108"
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Document source metadata
{
"id": "40797",
"sourceUrl": "https://purl.thewalters.org/art/42.1108",
"contentType": "object",
"stage": "normalized",
"title": "Ring with Intaglio Showing Head of Asclepius",
"description": "18th-century gem carvers sometimes depicted ancient subjects to appeal to gem collectors with antiquarian tastes. This intaglio portrays Asclepius, Greek god of medicine and healing, in profile. Asclepius’s attribute, a serpent entwined around a rod, appears at left. The symbol, which continues to be used in medicine today, has generated different interpretations, but it could be read as a symbol of renewal, as snakes shed their skins. This gem was part of the duke of Marlborough’s famous collection in England.",
"provenance": "George Spencer, fourth Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, by 1817, [mode of acquisition unknown] [Marlborough no. 251]; George Spencer-Churchill, fifth Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, 1817, by bequest; George Spencer-Churchill, sixth Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, 1840, by bequest; John Spencer-Churchill, seventh Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, 1857, by bequest; Sale, The Marlborough Gems, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 28 June 1875, p. 38, lot 251; David Bromilow, Bitteswell Hall, Leicestershire, ca. 1875, by purchase; Julia Bromilow Jary, Bitteswell Hall, Leicestershire, 1898, by bequest; Sale, The Marlborough Gems Purchased by the Late David Bromilow, esq., Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 26 June 1899, p. 43, lot 251; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1899, by purchase [Dikran Kelekian as agent]; Sadie Jones (Mrs. Henry Walters), New York, 1931, by bequest; Joseph Brummer, Paris and New York, 1941, by purchase [Brummer inv. no. N5143a]; Walters Art Museum, 1942, by purchase.",
"date": "18th century",
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"rightsUri": "CC0",
"language": "en",
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"dimensionsRaw": "Intaglio in gold setting H: 13/16 × W: 11/16 × D: 3/16 in. (2.1 × 1.8 × 0.4 cm); Ring H: 13/16 × W: 3/4 × D: 13/16 in. (2.1 × 1.9 × 2.1 cm)"
}
Document source extras
{
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Page context
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