Collections Online
Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales
Advanced Search
Roman intaglio (Mercury)
Complete. Mercury stands facing front and left, holding a moneybag in his outstretched right hand, and a caduceus in his left. A chlamys is draped over his left arm. Unchipped with no apparent signs of wear.
This is one of 88 engraved gemstones retrieved in 1979, mostly from the filling of a large drain beneath the cold hall of the fortress baths. The gemstones would originally have been set in finger-rings, and served as signets and charms or talismans for their owners. They were products of extremely skilled craftsman who worked on a minute scale without the aid of magnification. The gems are engraved with a wide range of deities, personification and symbols.
Collection Area
Item Number
Find Information
Site Name: Caerleon Fortress Baths, Caerleon
Notes: from the site of the frigidarium at the baths
Acquisition
Measurements
Material
Location
Collections Online is updated regularly, but please confirm that an object remains on display before making a special visit.