Intaglio with Tauroctony and Lion with bee

TNMM 546 ↔ CIMRM 2354

Red jasper, formerly in the Medici Collection and now still in Florence, Arch. Museum.

Obverse: Mithras to the l. kills the bull, whose tail ends in corn-ears. The dog, snake and scorpion. Cautes (r) and Cautopates (l). In the upper corners: the bust of Sol in radiate crown and with whip (r) ; the, bust of Luna in crescent (l). In the field: eight stars. In the l. part: a cross within a radiate crown - a sort of horn - dart - eagle with outstretched wings - caduceus - thunderbolt. In the r. part: raven - dagger - harpè - palmbranch with a death’s head in its centre.

Reverse: Lion with a bee in its mouth. Around him seven stars with magic inscriptions:

CHMEA, KANTEV, KONTEV, KONTEV, KHPIΔEV, ΔAPVNKW, ΛVKVNΣ.

«Les noms désignent les archontes planétaires» (Delatte).

Transverse oval, both faces flat. Shape 8–9. Green and red jasper (heliotrope). Damaged at the bottom and top right part of side B, mounted in a post-antique gold setting with a ring. Formerly in the Medici collection.

A: Lion striding to left with seven stars around which the following Greek inscription can be read: σημεα καντευ κοντευ κορνευ κεριδευ δαρυνγω λυκυνξ → variant of σημεα-logos.

B: In the middle, Mithras slaying the bull, wearing a short tunic, a mantle and a Phrygian cap, with a dog at the bull’s throat, snake below and a scorpion attacking from behind. The central scene is flanked by Cautes raising a torch on the left side and Cautopates holding a torch on the right side, both of them wearing cap, short tunic and boots. Above, on the left, the bust of Helios [sic] with nine rays around the head and a whip; on the right: another bust, probably that of Selene. In the free field: a palm branch with an unspecified object, six [sic] stars, two swords, a raven, an arrow, a caduceus (?), a thunderbolt, an eagle, unidentified objects and a radiated crown.

Provenance

From the collection of Leonardo Agostini, Rome; then collection of Cardinale Leopoldo de’ Medici.