Large Shell Cameo Brooch with Ceres & Omphale, c. 1880 & Later

Two women are depicted on this cameo, two figures from classical antiquity: one wears ears of corn in her hair and has a sickle in front of her as an attribute, while the other has a lion's skin draped over her head. The woman on the left is Omphale, known from the tales of Heracles. As punishment for the murder of the king's son Iphitos, Heracles was sold into slavery and came into the possession of Omphale, the queen of Lydia. At first he defended her kingdom against enemies, but when Omphale realized that her slave was the demigod Heracles, she quickly made him her husband. In blind love for her, Heracles did everything she asked - wore women's clothes, spun wool and did other "female" work, while Omphale carried his weapons and lion skin. It was only after the punishment had expired that Heracles realized his situation - and left her. The second figure depicted is the goddess Ceres, the Roman counterpart to the Greek Demeter. In ancient times, she was the patroness of fertility, agriculture and marriage. In the fine bas-relief of this cameo, we thus encounter two strong, self-determined female figures from antiquity. The carving was created in the late 19th century. The simple silver frame was added to the cameo in more recent times.

Estimate:£415.37

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