This Roman Imperial gold signet ring bears the
image of what is most probably the Emperor
Hadrian. The curly hair and full beard is
characteristic of hairstyles during his reign. He
also wears a corona, most likely made of laurel
leaves, evocative of auspicious occasions,
holidays and military honors. The custom of
employing engraved and inlaid gems was
occasionally substituted with using intaglios of
glass, as in the case of the present item.
Intaglio signet rings were used as seals for
documents sent by the wearer, and as such
verified the identity of the sender and the
veracity of the document. A symbol representing
the household or office of the wearer was usually
inscribed in the surface of the gem, sometimes
even a portrait of the wearer, if appropriate. This
one may have belonged to a steward from the
emperor’s household, or perhaps even the
emperor himself.
The intaglio is inlaid in a gold setting. The
quality of the portraiture, having survived well,
other than one crack down the horizontal
equator of the portrait, is still eminently visible,
depicting the emperor facing right, and
preserving great detail in the rendering of the
locks of his hair and the curls of his beard. Such
an object might have touched countless
documents and letters sent by the emperor
himself, or at least his most trusted servants.
The historical importance of a piece such as this
cannot be overstated.
Reference: H. B. Walters, Catalogue of the
Engraved Gems and Cameos, Greek, Etruscan
and Roman, in the British Museum (London:
British Museum, 1926), #2036, 2037, 2047.
