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The Gonzaga Cameo: portrait of the couple Ptolomy II Philadelphus and Arsinoe II
Alexandria, 3rd century BC
Sardonyx, with three layers, silver
157 x 118 mm
Provenance: bought in 1814 and originating from Malmaison, a gift from Josephine Beauharnais to Alexander I
St Petersburg, Hermitage State Museum, inv. n. GR 12678
This double profile portrait shows the imperial couple as gods undertaking their “sacred marriage” (ιερός γάμος): the empress wears a wedding veil and a laurel wreath; another wreath overlies the helmet of the emperor, decorated at the top with a star and winged dragon. Thrown over the king’s armour is the aigidos of Zeus (attribute of the supreme deity of Hellas), which portrays the heads of Medusa and Phobos. Inspired by the figure of Alexander of Macedonia, the engraver creates an idealised portrait of the deified emperor, a style which is to continue with consequent portrayals of the leader’s successors.
Experts have long debated the date and place of origin of this masterpiece. The time span covers at least three centuries, and differences of opinion still exist. Nowadays most authorities consider the cameo to originate from Alexandria, where the art of engraving precious stones began; this theory appears to be borne out by iconographic studies and the often observed link with the Egyptian tradition. Also to be taken into account are the mythological images absorbed by the Ptolomeian court, as well as similarities with Alexandrine relief sculptures. The style and nature of the engraving, quite unlike the Roman tradition, has encouraged many experts to move the date to the first Hellenistic period, when the double profile portrait was emergent. Known as the capita jugata, this style is characterised by one profile barely appearing just behind the other.
Researchers over the centuries have put forward a wide variety of interpretations of the figures represented on the jewel. Already by the Renaissance an attempt was being made to identify them as various different regal couples of antiquity: Augustus and Livia, Germanicus and Agrippina, Alexander of Macedonia and his mother Olympia, Ptolomy II and Arsinoe I. Subsequently, opinion changed and Roman emperors were suggested, such as Hadrian and his wife Sabina, Nero and his mother Agrippina, Nero and Antonia, Drusus the Younger and Livilla; among the Hellenistic rulers often put forward are Ptolomy I and Eurydice, Ptolomy III and Bernice, Alexander Bala and Cleopatra Tea, Ptolomy X Alexander and Cleopatra III, and even Mithridates Eupator.
Generally, considering the cameo to have been made in Alexandria and to date from the first Hellenistic period, most experts consider it impossible to interpret the figures as rulers of Syria or Rome. With the passing of time two popular and most likely versions remain: Alexander of Macedonia and Olympia or Ptolomy II and Arsinoe. Both theories have their supporters and both their adversaries, ready to point out the similarity with the figures portrayed and any one of these historical figures. Declaring themselves in favour of Alexander and Olympia are J. Krause, A. Furtwängler, J. Bernoulli, A. Heckler, G. Lippold, M. Bieber, G. Richter, G. Wirth.
However, considering the absence of information that might associate any female figure with Alexander and his veneration, and bearing in mind the fact that the leader seems to be depicted with dynastic traits rather than those of a couple, the assumption that the cameo depicts Ptolomy and Arsinoe would seem the most likely. This opinion, suggested by J. Eckhel and developed by E. Q. Visconti, is supported by C. Davenport, A. Springer, A. Michaelis, G. Rodenwaldt, A. Adriani, Z. Kiss, as well as M. Maksimova and O. Neverov, who to further support their position cite the coinage at the time of the first Ptolomys, when the capita jugata composition was more common.
For about a century the coins of the Ptolemys continued to depict the busts of two pairs of rulers in profile, Ptolomy I Soter with Bernice and Ptolomy II Philadelphus with Arsinoe. The double portrait of the latter couple became popular among gem-engraved works of art, among which the Vienna cameo is the most famous. In all probability, Ptolomy II Philadelphus and Arsinoe are also the royal couple portrayed on the Hermitage cameo. This is confirmed by the simple fact of resemblance, as well as the period during which our cameo was made: closer in time to the reign of Ptolomy II when, in Hellenistic Egypt, the union between Philadelphus and Arsinoe became the first royal marriage between brother and sister. Arsinoe found herself in the truly extraordinary situation of having sent away her brother’s first wife and of becoming his wife herself.
This was in contrast with Greek tradition, but in keeping with the customs of the ancient pharaohs. When listing the titles of Arsinoe it was underlined that she was daughter of an emperor, sister of an emperor, and wife of one; and evidently her ambitious and rebellious nature, added to her active participation in the governing of the kingdom, made it appear normal for the empress to be portrayed alongside the emperor. In the cult established on her death Arsinoe was called θεά φιλάδελφος, “the goddess who loves her brother”; in all likelihood, the portrayal of the ruling couple deified during their sacred marriage (as appears on our cameo) was one of the features that characterised the veneration of the sovereigns: θεων αδελφων. In conclusion, the Hellenistic imperial cult reached its own ultimate expression by means of precious artefacts such as this kind of double portrait of the imperial couple. Similar depictions helped communicate the concept that the deified ruler and his wife were the very embodiment of excellence, as was required by the political doctrine of the state and religious rulings of the period.
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