WOW! Antique Roman 22K Lion God Intaglio Sardonyx Magic Gem Talisman Ring S 9.25

Description: An EXTRAORDINARY large antique Roman high karat gold sardonyx agate intaglio magic gemstone talisman ring, dating to the circa 2nd-3rd century AD. In Roman times people were highly superstitious and magical gemstones, amulets or talismans play an important part of this history as they show the fusion between Roman, Greek, Jewish and Egyptian cultures as the Roman Empire expanded across the Mediterranean. They are also evidence of the popularity of religious activity and practices including magic. Magic gems were widely used in these times for many purposes from curing illnesses to protecting a child during birth, charming a lover or for personal protection against devils, angry gods or other things that could cause you harm. Some magic gems were carved with old gods like Horus or Aphrodite while on others the makers created new gods like, for example, Chnoubis (a snake with a lion's head) or Anguipe (a rooster-headed, snake-legged human figure). The inscriptions on magic gems are also of great interest to scholars. Often the names of gods from the Jewish traditions were carved onto the gemstones, less so with Ancient Greek or Egyptian gods. Longer text on stones is often difficult to decipher but researchers have determined it's usually the formula (spell) used to evoke the divine power required for the specific magical use of the stone and in rare occurrences the text will show exactly what the gem was used to protect against. Magic gems were kept on the person, often secured in pouches, sewn into clothes or even kept under the tongue when bathing-large troves of magic gems have been found when the drains of Roman baths were excavated. Today, they are not only found in museums around the world but also still used by those in touch with the ancient traditions. Complex magical gemstones are hard to find and this is a rare opportunity to own a piece of protective magical ancient history! This INCREDIBLE large and impressive Roman magical gem intaglio dates to the circa second to third century AD and would have been used as a protective talisman, wonderfully carved in brown and white banded sardonyx agate it shows a fantastic lion-headed, bird-footed deity with four arms holding various weapons to protect a human type figure in front of it. The mythical creature has an open mouth displaying a nice row of teeth with seven rays around the back of the head, it wears armor including a shield plate with a cross on it, one arm holds the human figure, the second is holding a raised trident, the third arm is holding a long curving whip with four scorpion stings on its tip which is protecting the body of the human and the fourth arm is holding a shield which is protecting the head of the human -whatever is coming your way you can be sure this is the creature you want to protect you! The reverse of the gem shows the white band of the sardonyx and is carved in Greek or Latin writing 'Petru Seps' with 'Petru' translating as rock/stone (strength) and 'Seps' being a mythical snake which legend suggests dissolves flesh and bone once bitten, implying at least one owner of this magical gem used it to guard against poisonous snakes. The gemstone looks to have been bezel-set and mounted during the 19th century in a large and heavy high karat rich gold setting which tests for +/-20k-22k gold. The outside of the ring has a French owl stamp with '75' meaning the ring was brought into Paris, France between 1893-1984 and has a minimum gold content of 18k. The ring is approximately a size 9 1/4. The face of the ring measures approximately 27mm x 23mm. The magic gem measures approximately 23mm x 19mm by sight. The band is about 7.7mm at the shoulders graduating down to about 3.5mm at the back. The ring rises approximately 6mm above the finger and weighs approximately 22.5 grams. The ring is in excellent condition with all over general wear to the stone and setting including scratches and fritting to the edge of the stone. Please check all the pictures. Thanks for looking and please take a look at my other items! WOW! Antique Roman 22K Lion God Intaglio Sardonyx Magic Gem Talisman Ring S 9.25 WOW! Antique Roman 22K Lion God Intaglio Sardonyx Magic Gem Talisman Ring S 9.25 Click images to enlarge Description An EXTRAORDINARY large antique Roman high karat gold sardonyx agate intaglio magic gemstone talisman ring, dating to the circa 2nd-3rd century AD. In Roman times people were highly superstitious and magical gemstones, amulets or talismans play an important part of this history as they show the fusion between Roman, Greek, Jewish and Egyptian cultures as the Roman Empire expanded across the Mediterranean. They are also evidence of the popularity of religious activity and practices including magic. Magic gems were widely used in these times for many purposes from curing illnesses to protecting a child during birth, charming a lover or for personal protection against devils, angry gods or other things that could cause you harm. Some magic gems were carved with old gods like Horus or Aphrodite while on others the makers created new gods like, for example, Chnoubis (a snake with a lion's head) or Anguipe (a rooster-headed, snake-legged human figure). The inscriptions on magic gems are also of great interest to scholars. Often the names of gods from the Jewish traditions were carved onto the gemstones, less so with Ancient Greek or Egyptian gods. Longer text on stones is often difficult to decipher but researchers have determined it's usually the formula (spell) used to evoke the divine power required for the specific magical use of the stone and in rare occurrences the text will show exactly what the gem was used to protect against. Magic gems were kept on the person, often secured in pouches, sewn into clothes or even kept under the tongue when bathing-large troves of magic gems have been found when the drains of Roman baths were excavated. Today, they are not only found in museums around the world but also still used by those in touch with the ancient traditions. Complex magical gemstones are hard to find and this is a rare opportunity to own a piece of protective magical ancient history! This INCREDIBLE large and impressive Roman magical gem intaglio dates to the circa second to third century AD and would have been used as a protective talisman, wonderfully carved in brown and white banded sardonyx agate it shows a fantastic lion-headed, bird-footed deity with four arms holding various weapons to protect a human type figure in front of it. The mythical creature has an open mouth displaying a nice row of teeth with seven rays around the back of the head, it wears armor including a shield plate with a cross on it, one arm holds the human figure, the second is holding a raised trident, the third arm is holding a long curving whip with four scorpion stings on its tip which is protecting the body of the human and the fourth arm is holding a shield which is protecting the head of the human -whatever is coming your way you can be sure this is the creature you want to protect you! The reverse of the gem shows the white band of the sardonyx and is carved in Greek or Latin writing 'Petru Seps' with 'Petru' translating as rock/stone (strength) and 'Seps' being a mythical snake which legend suggests dissolves flesh and bone once bitten, implying at least one owner of this magical gem used it to guard against poisonous snakes. The gemstone looks to have been bezel-set and mounted during the 19th century or earlier in a large and heavy high karat rich gold setting which tests between 22k and 23k gold. The outside of the ring has a French owl stamp with '75' meaning the ring was brought into Paris, France between 1893-1984 and has a minimum gold content of 18k. The ring is approximately a size 9 1/4. The face of the ring measures approximately 27mm x 23mm. The magic gem measures approximately 23mm x 19mm by sight. The band is about 7.7mm at the shoulders graduating down to about 3.5mm at the back. The ring rises approximately 6mm above the finger and weighs approximately 22.5 grams. The ring is in excellent condition with all over general wear to the stone and setting including scratches and fritting to the edge of the stone. Please check all the pictures. Thanks for looking and please take a look at my other items! Payment Please note payment must be received within 3 DAYS of purchase/auction end. Any unpaid items will result in the item being relisted and the non-paying buyer being blocked from our future listings. Shipping This item will be shipped USPS Priority Mail for domestic locations and USPS Priority Mail International for worldwide locations. We ship anywhere in the world unless otherwise stated. Delivery confirmation is included in the shipping costs. Insurance is included in the shipping costs if the item(s) is breakable. We will always combine multiple items to reduce shipping costs. Please check whether your country has customs/other import charges before you purchase/bid, as we are not responsible for any additional import charges incurred. Due to some shipping companies not delivering to certain addresses, we reserve the right to switch one shipping method with a similar shipping method (e.g. Fedex Ground/USPS Parcel Select) without notice. Please be aware that combined shipping may push a package over a weight or size limit, resulting in a different shipping method than originally stated. Terms of Sale TERMS OF SALE & RETURNS We make great efforts to honestly and accurately describe each item we list. We back this up with many photographs, all with a close-up zoom option for detailed inspection. Due to the majority of our items being antique/vintage and often unique it can be difficult to determine age and as such all our items are sold 'as is'. However, if we are not certain about the age of an item we will either not mention an age or say the item is being sold as a later or modern piece and then leave it up to more experienced buyers to determine the exact age. Items are not returnable if it was not of the age/value you were hoping it to be with no exceptions. If we place a date on an item we guarantee it to be of that period or earlier. If you require further pictures or more information about an item, please let us know prior to bidding or purchase. Items cannot be returned for any condition issues either shown in the pictures or mentioned in the listing. As many items we sell are one hundred years or older we will not accept returns for wear consistent with the item's age. Any item mentioned as sold 'as is' in the listing will not be eligible for any form of return or refund. If it is determined an item is eligible for a return, the item must be shipped back within 48 hours, insured and tracked. A restocking fee may apply. We are very easy to work with and welcome any and many questions during our listings, so please let us know if you have one! Thanks again for looking! About Us LION GOODS Antique, Vintage, Estate Jewelry & More! We love jewelry! Whether it's 2,000 or 20 years old, if it's beautiful to look at we buy it. Most of our pieces are from the Georgian, Victorian, Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Mid Century periods and we adore the unusual and unique. We try and only buy pieces with earth-mined natural stones-unless a piece is too gorgeous to pass up and then we will always mention it in our listing. All our gem stones and gold contents are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. We also have a passion for antiques and frequently come across interesting estate items while searching for jewelry which can be found in our store too. We are always adding to our inventory, so please check back frequently. Thank you for visiting our store! Pictures sell! Auctiva offers Free Image Hosting and Editing.300+ Listing Templates! Auctiva gets you noticed! The complete eBay Selling Solution.

Price: 9500 USD

Location: Blacksburg, Virginia

End Time: 2024-12-01T16:20:44.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD

Product Images

WOW! Antique Roman 22K Lion God Intaglio Sardonyx Magic Gem Talisman Ring S 9.25

Item Specifics

Restocking Fee: No

Return shipping will be paid by: Seller

All returns accepted: Returns Accepted

Item must be returned within: 30 Days

Refund will be given as: Money Back

Base Metal: Gold

Department: Unisex Adults

Main Stone Color: Brown

Handmade: Yes

Metal: Yellow Gold

Sizable: Yes

Main Stone Shape: Oval

Occasion: Anniversary, Birthday, Christening, Christmas, Confirmation/Communion, Engagement, Father's Day, Graduation, Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, Wedding

Vintage: Yes

Era: Roman 200-300AD

Country/Region of Manufacture: Italy

Year Manufactured: Pre-1920

Customized: Yes

Main Stone: Agate

Main Stone Creation: Natural

Shape: Oval

Ring Size: 9.25

Setting Style: Bezel

Jewelry Department: Fine

Number of Gemstones: 1