Ancient arts of Glyptics
Ancient arts of Glyptics. The Hermitage has the most perfect, according to critics, the product of stone carvings of ancient times – it is a historical cameo “Gonzaga Cameo”. This is one of the biggest gems. Its length is 15.7 cm, width 11.8 cm, height 3 cm. A relief cut from the magnificent three-layered onyx – upper and lower layer of dark brown, medium – milky white. Unlike most gems Gonzaga cameo has two profiles – male and female. Foreground shows an excellent profile of the king, on the second – the queen. Queen face is darker in color and expression differs from the face of the king. Some scientists suggest that carved busts belong to Alexander the Great and his mother Olympia. Stone of rare beauty, solemnly high artistic manner of execution and interpretation of the heroic images – all this makes “Gonzaga Cameo” one of the most outstanding monuments of ancient art.
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