Getty Museum

Cameo

Date

18th–19th century

Medium

Unidentified layered gemstone

Culture

Modern

Department

Jewelry

Institution

Getty Museum

The mature, bearded man on this cameo has a wreath of laurel leaves in his hair. His age, the wreath, and, in particular, the hair that covers the back of his neck suggest that he is meant to be Jupiter, the king of the Roman gods. In general, the head resembles the one created by the Classical Greek sculptor Pheidias in the 440s B.C. for his statue of Zeus seated on a throne that was in the god's temple at Olympia, in western Greece. The pristine condition of this gem alone suggests that it cannot be ancient, a conclusion supported by other features not characteristic of ancient art: the man's somewhat dreamy expression, his slight smile, and the presence on the wreath of a secondary branch on the back of his head.

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