Getty Museum

Hollow Ring

Date

about 500 B.C.

Medium

Gold

Culture

Greek

Department

Jewelry

Institution

Getty Museum

In Greek mythology, the siren, a creature with a bird's body and a woman's head, lured men to their deaths with its singing. Sirens were a popular motif on engraved Greek gems and rings. The siren on the bezel of this gold ring is somewhat unusual, however, in that she has human arms in addition to her bird's wings. The pointed oval form of the bezel became popular around 500 B.C. and continued into the Classical period. Bezels and rings were constructed separately, with the bezel added above a hollow, box-like compartment that was part of the tapering hoop. Engraved gold rings like this one were often used to impress an image on a clay or wax seal.

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