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Source Description
The heads of Bacchus (Dionysos), on the left, and Silenus, on the right, are in profile and facing each other on this intaglio. Bacchus is wearing a fillet, and one of Silenus’ pointed ears is visible. The heads had traditionally been identified as the philosophers Socrates and Plato.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
6087
label
Intaglio of Bacchus and a Silen
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
6087
sourceUrl
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Intaglio of Bacchus and a Silen
description
The heads of Bacchus (Dionysos), on the left, and Silenus, on the right, are in profile and facing each other on this intaglio. Bacchus is wearing a fillet, and one of Silenus’ pointed ears is visible. The heads had traditionally been identified as the philosophers Socrates and Plato.
provenance
John Stanhope, London, by 1748, [mode of acquisition unknown]; Philip Dormer Stanhope, fourth Earl of Chesterfield, London, 1748, by bequest; William Ponsonby, second Earl of Bessborough, Parkstead House, London, by 1761, by purchase [Bessborough no. 7 C, as ""Socrates and Plato""]; George Spencer, fourth Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, ca. 1765, by purchase [Marlborough no. 356]; 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. 57, lot 356; 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. 65, lot 356; 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
1st century BC (Late Hellenistic-early Roman Imperial)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Precious Stones & Gems
intaglios (sculptural objects)
finger rings
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
1.6
height
2.1
depth
0.6
dimensionsRaw
intaglio with gold setting: 5/8 x 13/16 x 1/4 in. (1.64 x 2.09 x 0.59 cm);ring: 13/16 in. (2.11 cm) (diam.)
Source extras
cul
Greco-Roman
med
carnelian; mount: gold
creator_ids
6191
collection_ids
ROM
JWL
exhibition_ids
none
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
9fd36893fab47720