Ring, late 6th–early 5th century b.c.
Gilt silver; L. of bezel 5/8 in. (1.7 cm)
Purchase, Mr. and Mrs. Martin Fried Gift, 1995 (1995.40)
This ring testifies to the complexity of artistic interconnection at the end of the Archaic period. The bezel is in the form of a cartouche, a shape ultimately of Egyptian origin that the Phoenicians disseminated in the western Mediterranean. The three mythological creatures that decorate it—winged lion, siren, and scarab beetle—came from the East as well. Rich Etruscan tombs of the eighth and seventh centuries B.C. yielded luxury objects such as ostrich eggs and works in faience that indicate the taste for, and means to acquire, such exotica. The Museum's ring represents a local adaptation.