This is the rating and price for Egyptian Gold Magical Ring With Ourobouros And Legend, 1968

Description : Roman Period, 30 BC-323 AD. A D-section gold hoop expanding to a discoid plaque with inset carnelian cloison, intaglio design of the serpent Ourobouros biting its own tail surrounding a Greek magical text '?????????/???????????/???????????/????????CIE?/E??? IERPBHKA/A?CIAIADA?/NI' invoking the help of the spirit Marmarao(?). 8.16 grams, 25mm overall, 19.37mm internal diameter (approximate size British S 1/2, USA 9 1/4, Europe 20.73, Japan 20) (1). UK art market, acquired prior to 1980. Cf. Marshall, F.H. Catalogue of the Finger Rings - Greek, Etruscan and Roman - in the Department of Antiquities, British Museum, London, 1968, item 1130 for type, 'Marmarao' or 'Marmaroth' is possibly the name of an ancient Near Eastern 'angel', spirit or minor deity. See Cresswell, J. The Watkins Dictionary of Angels, London, 2011. Accompanied by an Art Loss Register certificate. The Ouroboros was seen in the Greek and Roman worlds as a creature that was without beginning or end and according to Plato it was as the first living thing, a self-eating, circular being—the universe as an immortal, mythologically constructed entity. Due to the circular shape that it formed it was seen as having protective and magical properties and everything that it enclosed was seen as sacred. Magical spells were popular in the Graeco-Roman world and have been found in many parts of the Roman Empire. They take many forms such as writing onto pottery sherds or on papyrus as well as sheets of lead, silver or gold. Many gem stones were carved with magical symbols and spells and display an elaborate syncretism of Greek, Egyptian, Jewish, and even Babylonian and Christian religious influences. These stones were set into rings to protect the owner or help cure a long standing medical condition. The type of stone was also important as many had specific magical connotations. Whilst many of the spells can be translated some are composed of letters that form phonetic sounds with no meaning or are written backwards or even groups of letters that make no sense at all except to the magician who was consulted by the client, very often it was the cryptic form of the letters that was often the most important in harnessing divine help. According to Cresswell, Marmarao is 'an angel invoked in magic to cure bladder trouble'.
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