Gold Ring with an Intaglio of a Goat-Headed Rhyton. Greek, 6th–4th century B.C.

Carnelian Intaglio of a Goat-Headed Rhyton, Mounted in a Modern Gold Ring.

Eastern Mediterranean, likely Greek, 6th–4th century B.C.

Later mount and repair, modern
Ring size: UK Q / US 8 / EU 57
Bezel: 2.2 × 1.7 cm
Weight: 8.56 grams

An oval carnelian intaglio engraved with a depiction of a goat-headed rhyton. The vessel terminates in the forepart of a recumbent wild goat, the head rendered in profile with elegantly arched horns, pronounced muzzle, and carefully incised eye. The neck of the rhyton rises in a conical form behind the goat, its surface decorated with diagonal and cross-hatched incision suggesting ribbing or chased metalwork. The engraving is executed with a confident hand, showing particular sensitivity to the anatomy of the animal and the volumetric play of the vessel’s form. A small triangular area at the top left of the stone has been repaired in gold; both the repair and the present gold ring mount are modern additions.

The subject—a rhyton terminating in an animal protome—belongs to a well-established tradition in Eastern Greek and Achaemenid art of the late Archaic and Classical periods, in which zoomorphic libation vessels were used in ritual and ceremonial contexts. Goat-headed rhyta, though less commonly preserved in glyptic media, are attested in silver and ceramic examples, notably from Asia Minor and Thrace. The stylised horned animal, here likely a wild goat or ibex, is associated with vitality and mountain symbolism, while the rhyton itself signals elite drinking culture and votive use.

The use of carnelian is typical of high-quality glyptic production in the 6th to 4th century BC, valued for its durability and ability to take a fine polish. The style and iconography suggest an Eastern Mediterranean origin, most probably Ionian or Anatolian.

References:
For rhyta of similar form and iconography, compare the silver and gold animal-headed rhyta from the Panagyurishte and Derveni Treasures (Seipel, W., Antike Goldschmiedekunst, Vienna, 1980). A rhyton terminating in a goat protome from the 5th century BC is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (acc. no. 1989.281.15).