X1, Triumph of Licinius I (?): The emperor standing to the front in a chariot drawn by four horses which rear up on their hind legs, two on each side, a type ultimately derived from representation of the sun-god in his chariot. He wears the normal cuirass and paludamentum of which the latter billows out to the right. He seems to have a simple diadema above his brows, giving his head a rather squared off appearance, holds a globe in his right hand and grasps a sceptre in his left hand.
Period of Original Gem: first half of the 4th century AD
Material of Original Gem: mottled jasper
Description: Triumph of Licinius I (?): The emperor standing to the front in a chariot drawn by four horses which rear up on their hind legs, two on each side, a type ultimately derived from representation of the sun-god in his chariot. He wears the normal cuirass and paludamentum of which the latter billows out to the right. He seems to have a simple diadema above his brows, giving his head a rather squared off appearance, holds a globe in his right hand and grasps a sceptre in his left hand.
Last Recorded Collection: Market: ACR Auctions | Auction 13; 30 October 2014; Lot 119
Shape: Cameo
Size: 33x31x9
Comments: The way in which the emperor is depicted is suggestive of the period of the Tetrarchy. The general appearance of the emperor is reminiscent of those of the porphyry statues of four tetrarchs in Venice and the Vatican, especially of the latter group. The Vatican tetrarchs with their stumpy bodies and broad heads are remarkably similar. There can be no certainty of the identity of the emperor who could be any one of a number of figures, including Diocletian, Galerius, Maximian or Maxentius, but a good guess can be made on the basis of comparing the portrait of Licinius I on a silver bowl from the so-called Munich Treasure made ca. AD 321-322 and celebrating the quinquennalia of his son. Possibly, the cameo shows Licinius after he had defeated Maximinus at Adrianople in April 313. If so, this cameo, and not the (probably later) cameo in Paris may be regarded as the true Triumph of Licinius. Bibl.: M. Henig, 'A Cameo, probably Depicting the Triumph of Licinius I in AD 313', The Celator, August 2003, pp. 38-39.
