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Intaglio with the Head of Jupiter Serapis
This intaglio bears the head of the god Serapis in profile to the left. He is wearing a kalathos (woven basket) or modius (grain measure), which emphasized his associations with abundance and the underworld. Serapis was a syncretistic deity, adopting elements from the Egyptian gods Osiris and Apis and the Greek gods Zeus, Hades, Asklepios, and Dionysos. The cult of Serapis is thought to have been introduced during the reign of Ptolemy I of Egypt (306-283/282 BCE) and flourished under the Roman Empire.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Henry Walters, Baltimore, [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Measurements
H: 1/2 in. (1.3 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
42.92