ROMAN, 1ST CENTURY AD OR LATER | Intaglio with a bust of Silenus

The present cameo is carved in the ancient style but probably dates to the 16th century. It finds comparisons in a plaster documented in Cades Impronte dell'Instituto, Libro 10, class II A, no. 303. Further comparison is found in a gem from Lippold, Table CXI, no. 5 and Cades Impronte dell'Instituto, Libro 10, class II A, nos. 304 and 306. The conception of Silenus compares with Hellenistic and Roman 2nd-century portrayals of the companion to Dionysus.