A recently discovered cameo and a few considerations on the glyptics from Apulum (Roman Dacia)

Abstract

AbstractIn this paper, the author draws the attention of experts to a new glyphic discovery from Apulum. It is a schematic portrait of the Gorgon Medusa, depicted on a three-layered sardonyx. Based on parallels and the manufacturing technique, the author concludes that the piece originates from the workshops of Viminacium, Upper Moesia. The cameo is dated in the second half of the second century AD, prior the time when the canabae of the XIII Gemina legion rose to the status of municipium (ante AD 197). It is the only glyptic piece that bears the image of Medusa that's Dacian origin is certain. From an artistic point of view, it is a modest quality of execution, below the average provincial level. Furthermore, the author makes some remarks on the gems found in the collections of the National Museum of the Union in Alba Iulia, with a few additions and clarifications regarding the place of discovery and the possibility of the existence of a workshop of cavatores gemmarum at Apulum.