Roman Green Glass Bead Bracelet

Shoe-shaped in plan with yellow studs, loop to the heel; pin-lugs and catchplate to the reverse. 4.98 grams, 41 mm



Found Cambridgeshire, UK. Ex Wiltshire, UK, collection, 1990s.

Ellipsoid in plan with an engraved scene of a cockerel copulating with a hen, inscription above. 0.62 grams, 14 mm



Property of a European gentleman, acquired from the estate of a London collector (formed before 2000).

In ancient Rome, a cockerel, Latin gallus, was a symbol of virility and fertility. But gallus (plural galli) was also the term for a religious devotee and later for a priest of Cybele (Magna Mater). Often eunuchs, they performed ecstatic dances and rituals, sometimes even engaging in sexual acts as part of their religious practices. In Rome, the head of the Cybele priests was the archigallus, chosen by the quindecimviri sacris faciundis. Reliefs show that the archigallus was wearing luxurious and extravagant costumes and jewellery. This unique gemstone can be attributed to such an archigallus. The cult of Cybele/Magna Mater and the presence of galli also spread to Roman Britain, where it is attested, e.g. in Catterick and Corbridge.

A mixed group of ceramic bullae, tesserae or theatre tokens bearing low-relief motifs, mainly consisting of profile busts of deities. 31.1 grams total, 12-21 mm



From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s.

The term 'tessera' was used in Roman times to convey the Greek term σύμβολον (token). Small tiles are known as tokens, often shaped like coins, made of metal (copper, lead, iron), clay, bone, wood, or glass, stamped as well as engraved. The tokens, however, are not exclusively coin-shaped, as the Latin term 'tessera' suggests by etymologically referring to a square or at least a four-sided shape and confirmed in several cases by material remains of the past. Tokens and tesserae seem to have been used both in Athens and Rome for the distribution of goods. According to written sources, the term token is identified with credentials of the official authorities. They have also been interpreted as tokens of identity, as entrance tickets to theatre performances, tribunals or assemblies of citizens, archival material of seal engraving, as pawns in games, Charon’s obols and even as amulets.