Cleveland Museum of Art

Key

Date

1–100 CE

Medium

iron tang, bronze handle

Culture

Italy, Roman

Department

Greek and Roman Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleverly designed with an iron bit attached to a bronze handle, this key can be admired from all angles. While the handle terminates in the head of a ferocious boar, farther down are back-to-back heads of Mercury—his wings formed from the ears of the boar—and his goat-legged, horned son, Silvanus (also known as Pan). Given the rustic nature of the heads, scholars have suggested that the key might once have unlocked a country villa. The bronze handle of this key combines three heads: of a boar, Mercury, and Silvanus.

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