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Source Description
The flatness of the carving is meant to suggest ancient Roman workmanship, but Roman cameos are not this flat. This is most probably the work of a Renaissance carver creating an "ancient" carved gem, for which there was much demand. This ring can be traced back to the 1600s and was in famous collections of ancient gems, including that of the Fourth Duke of Marlborough (1739–1813) at Blenheim Palace.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
4180
label
Ring with Cameo of Head of Apollo Wearing a Laurel Wreath
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
4180
sourceUrl
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Ring with Cameo of Head of Apollo Wearing a Laurel Wreath
description
The flatness of the carving is meant to suggest ancient Roman workmanship, but Roman cameos are not this flat. This is most probably the work of a Renaissance carver creating an "ancient" carved gem, for which there was much demand. This ring can be traced back to the 1600s and was in famous collections of ancient gems, including that of the Fourth Duke of Marlborough (1739–1813) at Blenheim Palace.
provenance
Gabriel Medina, Livorno (Leghorn), by 1742, [mode of acquisition unknown] [Medina no. C.11]; Sale, A Catalogue of the Genuine and Capital Collection of Antique Gems of Signor De Medina, Late of Leghorn, by Mr. Langford, Covent Garden, 10-12 February 1761, p. 6, lot 16; William Ponsonby, second Earl of Bessborough, Parkstead House, London, 1761, by purchase [Bessborough no. 16 M]; George Spencer, fourth Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, ca. 1765, by purchase [Marlborough no. 63]; 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. 10, lot 63; 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. 12, lot 63; 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
ca. 1450-1600 (Baroque)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Precious Stones & Gems
cameos
rings
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
3
height
2.5
depth
2.5
dimensionsRaw
H: 1 3/16 × W: 1 × D: 1 in. (3 × 2.5 × 2.5 cm)
Source extras
med
blue and white banded agate and gold
creator_ids
33561
collection_ids
BAR
JWL
exhibition_ids
none
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
1577b2e38168e33a