Greek, Hellenistic, Ca. 2nd  – 1st Century B.C.

Rock Crystal

H: 2.9 cm - L: 5.3 cm

Serial: 29937

This elegantly designed ring is carved from rock crystal, a seemingly miraculous stone that was believed to have the powers of an amulet and therefore was highly valued in antiquity. Being considered apotropaic, rock crystal had the ability to ward off evil, and this ring, however beautiful, not only adorned the wearer but also protected them from harm. The ring has a plain “gemstone,” the simplicity of which is accentuated by the decorative ribbing in which the stone appears to be set, although the entire ring was carefully fashioned from one piece of crystal.

The name for rock crystal is derived from the Greek, krystallos and kryos, meaning “frost, cold, icy,” which encompasses the concept expressed by ancient authors that rock crystal is a form of petrified ice (Pliny 37.9.23) or ice hardened through intense freezing. Actually a pure, transparent variety of quartz, rock crystal is found naturally as large chunks or crystals in rock clefts and caverns, or as geodes or pebbles in gravel. Pliny mentioned that the rock crystal used in Rome came from India, and that Romans learned an appreciation of rock crystal from cultures of the Near East. He recorded additional sources of the mineral in Asia Minor, Cyprus, the Alps, Arabia, and Portugal, and commented that rock crystal from India was preferred. Rock crystal from the Alps, coming from Virunum, capital of the province of Noricum, was also particularly prized.

Although sources for this mineral were scarce in antiquity, it was utilized for many types of objects, such as jewelry – like this ring, and also vessels, handles, inlay, and small works of sculpture. The hardness of rock crystal makes it particularly difficult to carve, but the stone is highly desirable because when it is polished the glossy surface resists scratches. Due to the limited availability of rock crystal and the intensive labor process of making such objects, those made from it were considered among other rare and expensive objects of luxury in the ancient world.

PROVENANCE
Ex- British private collection; Ex- US private collection, New York, 2001.

PUBLISHED

Hardstones from the Ancient World, New York, 2000, No. 12

BIBLIOGRAPHY

For rock crystal and how it was worked: W. Helck, “Bergkristall,” in Lexikon der Ägyptologie I (Wiesbaden 1975), cols. 709-10; H. Beck, “Notes on Glazed Stones, Glazed Quartz II,” Ancient Egypt and the East (New York 1935), 19-28.