archaicwonder: Gold and Banded Onyx Ring Depicting the Eagle of Rome, 1st Century ADThis ring is a p
archaicwonder: Gold and Banded Onyx Ring Depicting the Eagle of Rome, 1st Century ADThis ring is a particularly fine example of a form known across the Roman empire. The black-and-white banded onyx intaglio depicts the eagle of Jupiter with a wreath in its beak on a pyxis with ram heads each side and ears of corn below. The gem is elegantly accommodated into the gold bezel which rounds in perfect geometry at each end. Effectively a continuity of propaganda from the First Triumvirate (Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus) and Second Triumvirate (Antony, Lepidus, and Octavian), the eagle symbolized the power of the victorious Roman emperor. Both the palm branch and the wreath are also symbols of victory. Augustus (27 BC - AD 14) in particular employed this image. Gems with this type of image set in rings, as in the case of the present example, were probably worn by military officers. The style of the gem and the shape of the ring suggest a late first century date. Rings and gems of a similar style are known from Pompeii and must date before AD 79 when the city was destroyed. -- source link