Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections

Hamat Ana

The present study aims to present a special part of the pieces from the collections of the 􀂳Vasile Pârvan􀂴 Institute of Archaeology of Bucharest, that is the ancient Egyptian funerary figurines (9.26-0D9.2B26-0D79.26-0) coming from the antiquarian donations. While there were some early attempts at doing preliminary descriptions of some of the objects of this 􀁎ind, hitherto this is the first in-depth study which investigates on multiple levels these funerary figurines. The Romanian antiquarian collections including ancient Egyptian artifacts and now belonging to the 􀂳Vasile Pârvan􀂴 Institute of Archaeology are dated around the middle of the 19th century. The beginning was made by the National Museum of Antiquities of Bucharest, founded in 1864 by the Prince Alexandru Ioan Cu􀁝a. According to the 1906 catalogue of the National Museum of Antiquities in Bucharest published by its director, archaeologist Grigore G. Tocilescu, in the cabinet no. 3 in Hall No. 1, also named Mavros Hall, on seven boards there were cult objects from the following collections (chronologically): General Nicolae Mavros, Ce􀁝ar Bolliac, Earl Scarlat Rosetti, Mihail 􀀮ogălniceanu, and Procopie Casotti. Among these, Tocilescu recorded 151 Egyptian objects to which he gave brief descriptions but upon closer observation most of these descriptions turned out to be rather inaccurate. Also, he provided no further details about these pieces belonging to the respective collections except those at positions 29-40, donated by Procopie Casotti in 1890. It is 􀁎nown that the Mavros donation included a small si􀁝e collection of Egyptian antiquities (including scarabs, statuettes, amulets, and li􀁎ely a fragment of basalt sarcophagus). Colonel Dimitrie Papa􀁝oglu made also an important donation of a rich archaeological material which, according to the inventory of donations, included a number of Egyptian pieces. Other significant donations of Egyptian antiquities made in the second half of the 19th century included those of Scarlat Rosetti, Nicolae 􀀮ret􀁝ulescu, captain I. Horovit􀁝 (Orovet􀁝). After 1906 the fund of Egyptian objects has increased due to the additions from the collections Len􀜈, Solacolu, Sut􀁝u, Orghidan (the Romanian Academy collection). Currently, there is a fund of 151 Egyptian objects in the collections of the 􀂳Vasile Pârvan􀂴 Institute of Archaeology of Bucharest. The pieces come from various antiquarian private collections, and cover different 􀁎inds of media and styles: 32:052,071; ceramic and alabaster vessels; plastic (statuettes of mummiform or predominantly mummiform funerary servants – of 9.26-0D9.2B26-0D79.26-0 type and fragments of 9.26-0 mummiform % legs); bron􀁝e statuettes (representing 􀁝oomorphic gods); integral or fragmentary anthropomorphic and 􀁝oomorphic statuettes of deities, having mainly funerary destination, as well as magical and religious one; scarabs; amulets with funerary destination, in mummiform context; of mummiform and cultic context type; adornments (nec􀁎laces; bead/axle dis􀁎); 􀃀int pieces; mummies of birds and a fragment of a human mummy (the hand of a woman with a scarab ring), as well as ecofacts (a septarian spheroidal geological formation or a septarian nodule, very similar to a scarab; carcasses of dates). The collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts of the 􀂳Vasile Pârvan􀂴 Institute of Archaeology of Bucharest includes 31 funerary figurines of the 9.26-0D9.2B26-0D79.26-0 type, to which is added one 9.26-0B container covering a period extending from the New 􀀮ingdom to the Ptolemaic period. Needless to say, being purchased from dealers by the aforementioned collectors, the history comprising the way of acquisition and the provenance of these 31 funerary figurines also still remains un􀁎nown. The author’s approach is to put in concordance the results of Egyptological research about funerary figurines with the information obtained from the analysis of the thirty-one pieces in the collections of the 􀂳Vasile Pârvan􀂴 Institute of Archaeology. This is why the study contains detailed pictures of each figurine, particularly because a substantial part of them have hieroglyphic inscriptions. Although extensive, the present study is just the first part of a much larger volume which will include the detailed catalogue descriptions of all Egyptian pieces in the collections of the 􀂳Vasile Pârvan􀂴 Institute of Archaeology. The author􀀊s aim is to provide an accurate description as detailed as possible of each object, to integrate it from a historical, chronological, societal and stylistic point of view in the wider framewor􀁎 of the ancient Egyptian artifacts of the same type and, as far as possible, to identify the original owners (the ancient Egyptian ones) of these funerary goods and to contribute to the reconstitution of their funerary treasure, and by means of this, of their role and status in the ancient Egyptian society. Last but not least, another goal would be the identification of the route of origin of the antiquarian type of acquisition. The study is structured in two main parts, starting from general to specific. The first part is a synthetic presentation of the funeral components as guarantors of immortality and of the history of the funerary statuettes of 9.26-0D9.2B26-0D 79.26-0 type. This section is essential for understanding of the role of the funerary figurines of this 􀁎ind in the ancient Egyptian society. The second one is a catalogue of the funerary figurines of this type in the 􀂳Vasile Pârvan􀂴 Institute of Archaeology of Bucharest. To integrate them into the general existing typology, two criteria of classification of the figurines were followed: the chronology and the presence or the absence on their bodies of any inscription. In this way the details of each piece will give scientists deeper insights into their specific history and integrate them into the general typology.

In 1951 the regretted Z. Szekely has published a number of Dacian archaeological objects (weapons, jewels, pottery, tools, utensils coins) kept by The Regional Museum from Sfântu Gheorghe. Under a certain title The Dacian Hoard from Simleu Silvaniei, these objects, with a real historical and archaeological value cannot offer us enough arguments concerning the character of the discovery. Uliul cel Mic hill, where the objects have been discovered, has two different ways of access. From the west side the way is accessible from the lower part the Măgura Șimleului hill. The second was of reaching there is the connection with Măgura Șimleului hill. The second way of reaching is made by a 2–5 m narrow saddle. Having a poor visibility on Crasna River’s gorge, we could not think about military purposes. After certain field researches made at the beginning of 2003, there were discovered amounts of rich Dacian special materials (jewelry, tools, weapons made of iron, bronze and silver). The beginning of a systematical research plan of the complex situated on the Măgura Şimleului hill-Uliul cel Mic, in 2007, solved the chronological problems and the character of the site. Further campaigns (2007–2013) aimed the northern sector of the hill where we discovered the rest of a Dacian metal workshop, set on a configuration of 4 terraces. Among the discoveries made in the area of the workshop is a Roman bronze ring, which bears a gem with the representation of a horse.

In 2014 a unique burial was unearthed in Gerulata cemetery III, containing an unusual number of rings. The buried woman aged 40–49 had two rings on each hand, one of which was a signet ring with a gem depicting the Egyptian deities Serapis and Isis. Another unusual item was a bracelet composed of seven disks with side openings for a string. Two glazed vessels have enlarged the number of known vessels of this type from this site to 13 pieces.

BIBLIOTHECA EPHEMERIS NAPOCENSIS 10 ISBN 978-606-020-556-2 9 786060 205562 FA B E R INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY OF ART CLUJ-NAPOCA STUDIES IN HONOUR OF SORIN COCIŞ AT HIS 65TH ANNIVERSARY ROMANIAN ACADEMY F A B E R STUDIES IN HONOUR OF SORIN COCIŞ AT HIS 65TH ANNIVERSARY FABER Studies in Honour of Sorin Cociș at his 65th Anniversary ROMANIAN ACADEMY INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY OF ART CLUJ-NAPOCA BIBLIOTHECA EPHEMERIS NAPOCENSIS 10 Editor Coriolan Horațiu Opreanu ROMANIAN ACADEMY - CLUJ BRANCH INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY OF ART CLUJ-NAPOCA FA B E R Studies in Honour of Sorin Cociș at his 65th Anniversary Editors: Silvia Mustață • Vlad-Andrei Lăzărescu Vitalie Bârcă • Viorica Rusu-Bolindeț • Dan Matei Editura Mega Cluj-Napoca 2022 Descrierea CIP a Bibliotecii Naţionale a României FABER : Studies in Honour of Sorin Cociş at his 65th Anniversary / ed.: Silvia Mustaţă, Vlad‑Andrei Lăzărescu, Vitalie Bârcă, .... Cluj‑Napoca : Mega, 2022 Conţine bibliografie ISBN 978‑606‑020‑556‑2 I. Mustaţă, Silvia (ed.) II. Lăzărescu, Vlad‑Andrei (ed.) III. Bârcă, Vitalie (ed.) 902 Copyright: Authors, 2022 DTP: Ioan Dorel Radu Technical editing and printing: MEGA Publishing House, Cluj‑Napoca Mega Publishing House | www.edituramega.ro e‑mail: mega@edituramega.ro CONTENTS Mihai BĂRBULESCU, Audaces fortuna iuvat 11 Tabula gratulatoria 19 List of publications of Sorin Cociș 21 I. ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATIONS AND INTERPRETATION Tibor‑Tamás Daróczi, Mihai Rotea, Alexandra Comşa, Jesper Olsen Radiocarbon dating the Bronze Age burial grounds of Dumbrăviţa – “Stricata” and Tureni – “La furci” from the Eastern Carpathian Basin 41 Ștefana Cristea, Călin Timoc The metalworking workshop from Dierna (Orșova, Mehedinți County) 59 George Cupcea, Sebastian Danciu, Evelyn Ciocan Recent contributions to the Roman enclosure of Napoca 89 Dan Matei A road segment from Roman Dacia at Gligorești (Luna Commune, Cluj County) 103 Alexandru Popa, Zsigmond Lóránd Bordi, Andrea Popa Zum aktuellen Forschungsstand des Römerlagers von Boroşneu Mare im SO Siebenbürgens 111 Vitalie Bârcă The Sarmatian burial of Chiscani – “sat” (Brăila County). Notes on the grave goods and on the grave dating 139 Alpár Dobos, Dorottya Nyulas Souvenirs from the past. Roman objects as grave‑goods in the Avar Age cemetery at Noșlac (Alba County) 165 Ioan Stanciu, Călin Ghemiș The archaeological site at Săcueni – “Horó Farm” (Bihor County, North–West Romania). Results of the 1996 campaign 187 Erwin Gáll, Florin Mărginean Macro‑, respectively micro‑regionalism in the light of the “Centre‑Periphery model” and the problem of lack of burial sites in eastern Transylvania, northern part of Muntenia and Oltenia (the beginning of a thematic approach) 207 II. EPIGRAPHICAL STUDIES Dan‑Augustin Deac Graffiti aus Dacia Porolissensis (II) 233 Cosmin Onofrei, Dragoș Blaga N(umerus) M(aurorum). Cultural identity and national cults in the army of Roman Dacia 243 Peter Scherrer Ein mögliches Fragment der Gründungsurkunde der Colonia Ulpia Traiana Augusta Dacica Sarmizegetusa, oder: Sieben Litterae – und eine Menge Phantasie 253 III. MATERIAL CULTURE / ARTEFACTS III.1. MILITARY EQUIPMENT Dorel Bondoc VTERE FELIX belts sets from the Roman auxiliary fort at Răcari 261 Liviu Petculescu A symbolic hasta from Micia auxiliary fort 267 Helga Sedlmayer Auf der bukolischen Insel des goldenen Zeitalters. Zu einer außergewöhnlichen Zierscheibe eines Pferdegeschirrs aus Bruckneudorf (Oberpannonien) 277 III.2. BROOCHES Maurizio Buora, Ergün Lafli Arrian, the Gordian knot and five fibulae from Telmessus 291 George Nuțu, Gabriel Mircea Talmațchi, Sorin Ailincăi, Constantin Șova, Cristian Cealera A group of brooches from Municipium Tropaeum Traiani 299 Jacek Andrzejowski An impressive brooch found by the Narew River (North–East Poland) 319 Coriolan Horațiu Opreanu Brooches of Dybäck / Independența type in Transylvania and Banat 337 III.3. LAMPS, METAL VESSELS & STATUETTES George Bounegru, Ilie Lascu A bronze lamp recently discovered at Apulum 345 Silvia Mustață, Ovidiu Țentea The metal vessels from Mălăiești Roman fort 351 Jan Schuster Sweben, in Bronze und Silber gegossen 371 III.4. BONE & ANTLER ARTEFACTS Malvinka Urák, Adrian Ursuțiu Late Bronze Age antler cheekpiece from a Gornea‑Kalakača settlement site II – “Canal irigații” from Giarmata (Timiș County) 385 Vlad‑Andrei Lăzărescu, Coriolan Horațiu Opreanu Two ornamented antler objects from the settlement at Suceagu (Cluj County) 415 Sergiu Musteață Antler as raw material for manufacturing various objects in Central and Eastern Europe during Late Antiquity 427 III.5. CERAMICS Dan George Anghel A terracotta depicting a new‑born discovered at Apulum 451 Dan Elefterescu Thymiaterion / turibulum cult incense burners and lampstands from Durostorum (Ostrov) – “Ferma 4” 467 Viorica Rusu‑Bolindeț, Florin‑Ovidiu Botiș Myths and religious representations on the Roman local ceramic products discovered on the Basilica extra muros Sector at Histria 487 Katalin Sidó Roman stamped pottery from Călugăreni / Mikháza 523 III.6. MARBLE ARTEFACTS George Nuțu, Bernd Päffgen A note on a sigma‑shaped mensa from Argamum 541 III.7. JEWELERY & NUMISMATICS Ana Cristina Hamat, Ștefan Viorel Georgescu Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 559 Adinel C. Dincă, Radu Ardevan An antique engraved gem in Medieval Sighișoara 589 Mihai‑Stelian Munteanu The Latinhood of the Romanians in the medalistics of the 1906 General Exhibition of Bucharest 601 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU Abstract: This article discusses the rings with open link and serpentiform body, discovered on the territory of the Roman province Dacia at Apulum, Ulpia Traiana Sarmisegetusa, Micăsasa, on the northern border at Ilișua and Poguior, but also in the neighbouring province of Moesia Inferior, at Noviodunum and Tomis, along with an artefact discovered outside the borders of the Empire, near the present‑day city of Arad. The rings were made of gold, silver and bronze, being discovered in both military and civilian environments, some of which are part of complex funeral inventories. Few of them are part of the old collections and therefore do not keep information about the context of discovery. Also, the ring from Poguior, discovered at the beginning of the 20th century, is now lost. To these, we can add three more artefacts, unpublished, which bring the total number to 16 rings held in the Romanian collections. FABER . Stu dies i n honou r of S or i n C o ciș at his 6 5 t h Ann ivers ar y C luj ‑Nap o c a | 5 59–5 8 7 Keywords: small finds, ring with serpentiform body, Roman Dacia, Moesia Inferior, 1st–3rd centuries. This article discusses a special type of jewellery, namely serpentiform open‑headed rings. The 16 artefacts (Pl. I/1), were discovered on the territory of Romania and are currently in the collections of several museum institutions. Thus, the rings discovered at Apulum and Oarda are in the collection of the National Museum of the Union, Alba Iulia (MNUAI). The ring discovered at Ulpia Traiana can be admired in the exhibition of the Museum of Dacian and Roman Civilization from Deva (MCDR). The two jewels discovered on the Roman site at Micăsasa are part of the collection of the National Museum of Transylvanian History, Cluj‑Napoca (MNIT), and the piece from Ilișua is in the collection of the Bistrița Năsăud Museum Complex in Bistrița (CMBN). The pieces from Cioroiu Nou and Locusteni are part of the collection of the Oltenia Museum, located in Craiova (MOC). The ring discovered at Noviodunum is in the collection of the Danube Delta Eco‑Tourism Museum Center in Tulcea (ICEM), and the one discovered in Tomis is currently kept in the collection of the Museum of National History and Archaeology Constanța (MINAC). The last of these series was discovered in western Romania, near Arad, in the settlement from site B06, being located in the collection of the Arad Museum Complex (CMA). Unfortunately, the piece from Poguior, discovered at the beginning of the 20th century, is currently lost. 560 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU Such rings have been reported in several typologies regarding Roman‑era rings, being introduced most of the time within then open‑link rings, and have rarely been addressed separately in typologies or even in more discussions concerning the type. In the Romanian literature, although these artefacts have been presented separately or as part of specialized typologies, they have not yet been the subject of an in‑depth analysis. Discovery context Some of the pieces presented in this article come from old collections, which is why information on the context is very little or has even been lost over time. Such is the case for the rings discovered at Apulum, Poguior and partly Micăsasa. Two of the mentioned pieces, the ones from Cioroiul Nou and Locusteni, are still unpublished, being mentioned by the courtesy of our colleague, D. Bondoc, to complete the statistics, which is why we also thank him in this way for this kind information. A third unpublished piece, made of bronze, was recently discovered during research at the Roman villa from Oarda‑Bulza,1 this information was received from our colleague, M. Egri, to whom we are also grateful. Alba Iulia, in ancient times called Apulum, was the commercial capital of the Roman province of Dacia and the place where five rings of this type were discovered. Two of these, cat. nos. 4 and 5, come from the old research conducted by A. Cserni in municipium / colonia Aurelia, since 1912. Unfortunately, this is all the information mentioned in this case, a situation also valid for other objects from the old collections and located at MNUAI. Another ring, cat. no. 3, was discovered also by A. Cserni in the late 19th century, and for two other silver rings, cat. nos. 1 and 2, which are also part of the old collections, their place of discovery and context are unknown. All five artefacts were first published almost a century after the discovery, in 2011, as part of an exhibition catalogue. The ring discovered on the northern border of Dacia, at Poguior, cat. no. 8, is lost today, being an old find. In this area, on Poguior Hill (Ortelec village, Zalău town), archaeological traces have been reported since the 19th century by K. Torma. He conducted research in the area of the fortification in 1878, research afterwards continued by G. Finály. In both campaigns, fragmentary ceramic and tegular materials were discovered. In the research from 1903, G. Finály mapped two sections on the ruins of the tower. One of the artefacts discovered was the silver ring with the serpentiform body, considered for a long time to be a bracelet, due to an erroneous translation.2 Poguior was also archaeologically investigated by N. Gudea, who established that the ruins belong to a Roman circular tower, part of the fortification system of the Poarta Meseșeană pass. A final stage of the archaeological research took place in 2019, when all the archaeological information was verified, reorganized and the Roman tower was finally published. Two pieces fashioned from precious material were discovered at the Roman site of Micăsasa, already famous for ceramic production.3 The golden ring from Micăsasa (cat. no. 10), comes from the ruins of one of the pottery workshops.4 It was found at 0.49 m depth, in the 2nd The research at Oarda – “Bulza” is part of the Apulum Roman Villa Project, co‑funded by SSHRC Canada, Ministry of Culture and Alba County Council through MNUAI. 2 Torma 1880, 78; Finály 1904, 14, Fig. 4; Gudea 1985, 178; Gudea 1997, 77; Cociș, Bejinariu 2019. 3 Mitrofan 1993; Mitrofan 1994; Mitrofan 1995; Rusu‑Bolindeț 2021, 319–323. See also the discussions regarding the terracotta mold depicting Sarapis, discovered in Micăsasa in Deac 2020. 4 Isac 2013, 502. 1 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 561 habitation level, in a workshop destroyed in the fire.5 The second ring from Micăsasa (cat. no. 9), is made of silver and was discovered near the first, in the same level of debris.6 The 2nd level of habitation of the settlement has been dated by I. Mitrofan in the second half of the 2nd century and the first half of the next, but the timeframe was narrowed by V. Rusu‑Bolindeț in the period between the second half of the 2nd century and the first quarter of the next.7 As far as the ring from Ilișua is concerned (cat. no. 6), the information concerning the context is missing, the only mention is that it is a find from the castrum.8 The identification of the settlement near the fort of Ilișua with the ancient Arcobara, wrong spelled as Arcobadara and the discoveries published lately, paint the image of a prosperous settlement, with an epigraphically identified population of Latins, Greeks, Thracians, Celts, Syrians, Illyrians, located on the northern border of Dacia.9 The B06 site was discovered during the preventive research conducted on the occasion of the construction of the Arad – Timișoara motorway in 2010. It is located on the Arad – Seceani section, at 15+490–15+780km. As a result of non‑invasive research, a large settlement was identified, of which only a part was investigated. Following the archaeological research carried out on the B06 site, 132 stratigraphic units were identified and investigated within the perimeter of the motorway duct, of which 3 are burial tombs belonging to the Sarmatians. The Dacian settlement dates broadly to the 2nd – beginning of the 3rd centuries AD, the tombs are dated at the end of the 2nd – first decades of the 3rd centuries AD, and the complexes discovered in the southern half of the investigated surface belong to another chronological and cultural level (4th–5th centuries AD).10 The ring in question, cat. no. 7, was discovered in complex 41, belonging to the Dacian settlements. Another gold ring, cat. no. 13, was published in the early 80’s and it was a discovery made in the north eastern part of the sanctuary of the gods Aesculapius and Hygeia from Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa.11 Unfortunately, this discovery does not appear mentioned in the research reports published in the same period or in the book concerning the small finds and therefore, this localization must be viewed with circumspection.12 It appears quoted in an article from 1988, regarding Roman adornments discovered at Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa, the erroneous identification being preserved and being dated to the 3rd century AD.13 The ring discovered at Tomis, cat. no. 12, is part of the funeral inventory from grave M1 discovered in 17.04.1986 (Pl. II/2). The burial was discovered on Ferdinand Avenue, near the Turkish consulate building, on a rescue excavation conducted in this area. The very rich inventory indicates a woman’s grave and consists of numerous ceramic, bronze and glass vessels, a bronze chandelier, as well as a rich funerary parure consisting of a funerary wreath crown, a torques, gilded appliques for clothing, a brooch, two bracelets, a pair of earrings and seven rings. It was dated in the 2nd century AD.14 The ring from Noviodunum (Issacea), cat. no. 11, also belongs to a funerary inventory, dated during the reign of Emperor Marcus Aurelius.15 The fortuitous discovery was made on Mitrofan 1993, 43–44. Mitrofan 1993, 44. 7 Rusu‑Bolindeț 2021, 319–321. 8 Isac, Gaiu 2006, 425. 9 Gaiu 2003; Gaiu, Zăgreanu 2011; Dana, Nemeti 2012; Mustață 2012; Nemeti 2014; Gaiu 2015. 10 Bârcă, Gindele 2021, 91, 97. 11 Nemeș 1982–1983, 238. 12 Daicoviciu, Alicu 1981, 73–80; Alicu et alii 1994, 115. 13 Alicu, Cociș 1988, 228, 244. 14 Lungu, Covacef, Chera 2012, 23–24; Covacef 2013, 422–425. 15 Simion 2008, 257; Ailincăi, Paraschiv 2013, 435. 5 6 562 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU 15th of August 1973, on the site of a much‑flattened mound, damaged by agricultural works. The deceased was placed in a stone sarcophagus facing N‑S, and inside, the skeleton was deposited in a supine position with its head facing north. Next to the deceased, on the left side, was a single gold earring, and in the area of the arm, the gold ring in the shape of a snake was identified. The inventory was completed by a second gold ring with a glass stone (inv. no. 731) and five bronze coins, four of which were minted under Antonius Pius and one during the reign of Marcus Aurelius (Pl. II/3). From a topographic point of view, the place is located in the Western vicinity of DN 22 Tulcea‑Isaccea, near the ancient road that started from the fortress to the south‑west, towards the objectives mentioned in today’s topographic plans “La Două Movile”, and its connection with the current national road.16 Description of the artifacts. Typological and chronological classification The bracelets and the rings decorated with the motif of animal or snake heads were made famous by the Greek, this being a motif taken from the Oriental area and transmitted, with few modifications also to the Etruscan and Roman fashion. Incidentally, the snake motif is also used for other types17 of jewellery, such as necklace clasps or gemstones.18 Serpentiform jewels are found starting with the end of the 4th century BC in the Hellenistic kingdoms and in Tarentum, spreading from here throughout the European area and starting to be used throughout Italy as early as the first century of the Empire; among famous examples are the finds from Pompeii, Oplontis and Herculaneum.19 Currently, there are very well‑known examples from all over the western part of the Empire, plus the already known finds from Egypt,20 and also from several eastern provinces.21 Beyond the Roman rule, jewellery decorated with the snake motif, and in particular rings, occupy an important place in the Celtic jewellery trade as well,22 influencing in their turn a wide area and representing the second influence, after the direct, Greek one – in the Balkan jewellery trade. It is important to note that this type is used in the Roman world until the 3rd century, but with discoveries dated even after this period.23 The Simion 2008, 257. Guiraud 1975, 79. 18 Numerous gemstones discovered on the territory of Romania bear the representation of the serpent associated with the representation of a deity or other animals; we mention the gem with the head of Sarapis discovered at Apulum, see Bounegru et alii 2011, 85; also, the hand fragment from an imperial statue, also discovered at Apulum, bears a gem ring with the representation of a snake, see Bounegru et alii 2011, 72. 19 Guiraud 1975, 81; Ogden 1990, 116; Johns 1996, 37; d’Ambrosio, De Carolis, 1997, 34, 37–38, 66–69, 80, 92–96. 20 Many examples of rings from Egypt are found in the collection of the MET Museum, see no. inv. 24.2.10, 10.130.1511, 10.130.1509, 24.2.9, and 10.130.1510 (https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/547914, accessed: 24.01.2023); see also Ogden 1990, 115–116. 21 Two rings were also discovered in the sanctuary from Gurzuf pass, on the south‑eastern shore of Crimea, one made of silver with two snakes facing each other, holding in their open mouths a mystic cista; the second one is fashioned from gold with the representation of a staff around which a snake is wrapped, see Novichenkova 2014, 149 and Novichenkova 2016, 223. 22 Such jewellery has been discovered in the Celtic world, especially in Britannia and Gallia, mostly bracelets, with a chronology framed to the 1st century BC‒1st century AD, see Johns 1996, 44; Crausaz 2016, 12. Also, in Scandinavia, during the period equivalent to the Roman rule over Europe, jewellery with snake heads represented elements of insignia for certain members of the ruling elite, expression of regional alliances and, at the same time, amulets loaded with great power that had to be destroyed at the death of their owner. Typologically, they fit into jewellery series dated to the end of the La Tène period in Europe, outside the borders of the Empire, see Reiersen 2018. 23 Guiraud 1975, 86. See also Daňová 2010, 373, cat. nos. 1452–1454 and 390–391, cat. nos. 1518–1519. 16 17 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 563 increasingly obvious schematization of details, which can be seen on the pieces dated at the end of the 2nd century and during the next century, is connected by H. Guiraud with a functionality increasingly linked to superstitions,24 well‑grounded in previous centuries. When considering the material from which the artefacts from the Romanian collections are manufactured, we can say that 4 of them were made of gold, 5 of silver and the rest are made of bronze. As for the typology, the rings can fit into several types, as follow: The ring from Apulum is made of a bronze bar (Pl. IV/12), with a diameter of 13 mm, made in the form of a spiral with two whorls, which has as a termination a single snake head. The snake was represented anatomically correct. Unfortunately, the tail is broken and the ring remains fragmentary. Without information about the context of the discovery, the piece has been widely dated, to the period of the 2nd–3rd centuries AD. Similar to this are two other rings also discovered at this site, one in the praetorium consularis (Pl. IV/13) and the other in colonia, Aurelia Apulensis (Pl. IV/14). Both are made from bronze, with large diameters of 25–26 mm, and were worked by drawing, hot stamping and engraving. The head of the snake is no longer preserved, but the specimen from the praetorium consularis has its tail marked by three reduction line, to create the illusion of the tip of the tail. Both are missing their heads due to both the fragility of the neck and the weight of the head. The two silver rings, which come from the old collections of MNUAI (Pl. III/8–9), have the same diameter of 20 mm, being manufactured by drawing, hot stamping and decorating with the help of a punch and chisel.25 The gold piece discovered at Micăsasa (Pl. III/5), is a ring with multiple spirals, consisting of two whorls, from which only the tip of the tail is missing. The piece was manufactured by heat modelling, after which the details were worked by incising. The scales on the head of the snake, the round eyes, and the network of lines on the top and bottom of the head were thusly represented. The shallow incisions render the scheme of the scales on the body, in the form of a network of lines in a rhombus manner, visible only on the upper part of the body. The maximum diameter is 26 mm, the artefact has a weight of 9.50g.26 The second ring discovered at Micăsasa (Pl. III/10), was manufactured out of silver. Two spirals are preserved from its body, the snake having its head parallel to its tail. The diameter of the artefact is 27 mm, with a weight of 13.56g. The piece was manufactured in a mould and heat modelled, the details were made with the chisel, being visible on the top of the head, on the snout of the snake and in the representation of the eyes. The body is decorated almost entirely with incised lines, intersecting in a rhombus to create the illusion of scales covering the body of the reptile.27 The ring discovered in the fort from Ilișua (Pl. IV/15) was made of bronze, with a diameter of 14 mm. The link is worked from a bronze sheet by hammering, in the form of a snake whose head meets its tail. The piece is made schematically, without details and is widely dated, during the period of the province.28 The silver specimen discovered at Poguior (Pl. III/11) is a ring with multiple spirals, precisely 7 whorls, worked from a drawn metal bar. The spiral shape was obtained by heat modelling, and the details by punching and engraving. The median spiral is very stylistically decorated with the image of two heads of snakes facing each other. It is easy to recognize the eyes Guiraud 1975, 86. Bounegru et alii 2011, 82. 26 Isac 2013, 502. 27 Mitrofan 1993, 44–45. 28 Isac, Gaiu 2006, 424–425. 24 25 564 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU and the pattern of the scales. Both free ends at the ends of the spirals are sharpened to embody the two tails of the reptiles. The gold ring discovered at Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa (Pl. III/7), was identified upon publication as an earring.29 With a diameter of 13 mm and a weight of 6.13g,30 its body is represented in the form of a snake whose head is perpendicular to the link. The tail is also perpendicular to the link, located in the extension of the head, being gathered in a coil consisting of three spirals, with the center left empty. The ring does not have an open, classical link, the head is glued to the tail; this is a variant of the ring type with the open link. The piece was manufactured by drawing and hot hammering, the details being incised using a chisel. Another gold artefact was discovered during preventive research conducted at Tomis (Pl. III/4). It has several spirals (4 whorls), it has endings in the form of opposite snake heads. The piece was manufactured by hammering from a gold bar, which features two longitudinal ribs along the length of the piece. Unfortunately, the artefact does not show any kind of detail. The weight is 5.24g, and the diameter is 15 mm.31 The second artefact discovered in Dobrogea, at Noviodunum (Pl. III/6) is a ring with several spirals, with a flat section and the head perpendicular to the link and tail. It was manufactured by hammering from a gold bar, the details of the upper part of the head and body are incised in the form of lines that intertwine and form a rhombic pattern. The snout is marked with a line, but the eyes are not represented. The diameter of the artefact is 17 mm and the weight is 4.67g.32 The typology of serpentiform rings involves primarily a discussion of open‑link rings, the class in which this type is generally framed. We say generally because there are a few variants, especially those with snake heads facing each other and glued snake heads or with snakes holding a mystic cista in their mouth. These are, however, rarer variants within the type, the vast majority of the pieces being, however, with open ends. The ring with open link corresponds, in the typology organized for Dacia Superior, to type II. 2. 2.33 In the typology published by M. Bălăceanu for Roman Oltenia, it corresponds to type VIII,34 and it was assigned by A. Isac to type VI from the typology of the rings from Porolissum ‒ Dacia Porolissensis.35 In external typologies it corresponds to type VII for Gallia at H. Guiraud, 36 at N. Ergün type VII, 37 and in a more recent typology for the pieces discovered at Aquincum ‒ this corresponds to type VIIIb.38 Reminiscent of the Hellenistic tradition39 but also of the autochthonous tradition, these adornments present a problem of exact dating in the Roman world due to the longevity of the variants40 and their distribution. At Aquincum, such an artefact is part of the funerary inventory of a tomb dated with coinage from Constantius II.41 The broad chronological framing, as there are also very early pieces,42 is based on a social distribution determined by the versatility of the Nemeș 1982–1983, 238. We thank our colleague Oana Tutilă from Museum of Dacian and Roman Civilization Deva for her help in studying this piece. 31 Covacef 2013, 424. 32 Ailincăi, Paraschiv 2013, 435. 33 Hamat 2011, 97–98. 34 Bălăceanu 1999, 116. 35 Isac, Gaiu 2006, 418, Pl. I, no. 8. 36 Guiraud 1989, 195. 37 Ergün 1999, 721, Fig. 4. 38 Facsády 2009, 40; Facsády, Verebes 2009, 994, Fig. 1. 39 Guiraud 1989, 195. 40 Bălăceanu 1999, 116. 41 Facsády 2009, 40. 42 Hamat 2011, 97–98. 29 30 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 565 material and therefore on an affordable price for the buyer. Also, the rings with open ends bring other discussions, signaled by the Latin literature. Literary sources recall that a ring with open ends helped to better communicate with the Gods, and for this reason it was worn by flamen dialis.43 The interrupted circle of jewels was the guarantee that the prayers of men would be heard and that the gods would listen to the mortals. The apotropaic value and a possible cultic function are therefore called into question. Typologically, the open‑link, serpentiform body rings have been subsumed into open‑link rings, rarely appearing as their direct subtype. The open‑link ring has two variants: either with simple open ends, or with heads decorated in the form of stylized snakes or animal heads.44 Such pieces have been reported in several typologies that appeared throughout the Empire, being studied separately due to the relative rarity of the finds. In the typology published in 1913 by F. Henkel, still in use, snake rings fall into type III with gold, silver and bronze finds.45 The typology implemented by H. Guiraud in 1975 considered the number of heads and the number of spirals, being in fact the first specific typological classification. Based on these criteria, six types were defined and chronologically classified,46 which remained the reference for future work. In the early 90’s, E. Riha includes these rings in 2.18 type with variant 1 for Augusta Raurica.47 Near Romania, these rings were classified into separate types, both for the finds from the territory of Bulgaria and from Serbia. The typology of R. Slokoska included them in type II.48 The ring with the open link and the endings in the shape of heads of face‑to‑face snakes discovered in Aquae Calidae and dated in the 1st century of the Empire49 falls in this category. In Serbia, I. Popović included this type of rings in type VII, for Moesia Inferior. It is also worth noted that in this province, the body of the ring has at most two turns, being represented by specimens with the link formed by a single snake, with the head and tail parallel. It is represented by the finds from Tekia, Guberevać, Horreum Margi, Felix Romuliana and several other finds with unknown locations from the territory of the province, chronologically framed between the second half of the 1st century and the 4th century.50 At Horreum Margi, the ring has been dated between the 3rd century and the first half of the 5th century, and at Romuliana was dated in the late period of the complex.51 In a more recent paper from 1996, C. Johns publishes a common typology for bracelets and rings, based on three main types: type A ‒ a single snake with a spiral or more‑having the head and tail parallel to the link, type B with one or multiple spirals made of two snakes with their heads facing each other or opposite and type C, with complex design made of two or more snakes to which the head of Isis or the knot of Hercules are added.52 Using the two specific typologies, the rings discovered on the territory of Romania can be included as follows: 1. Rings with the representation of a single snake, with two or more spirals and with the head and tail perpendicular to them. Here the gold rings from Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa, Micăsasa and Noviodunum, along with the bronze ring from Apulum are included. It corresponds to Aulus Gellius, Noctes Atticae, 10, 15, 6. Facsády 2009, 40. 45 Henkel 1913, 6–8, 47–48, 76–77. 46 Guiraud 1975, 87. 47 Riha 1990,41–42, Pl. 12. 48 Ruseva‑Slokoska 1991, 99. 49 Ruseva‑Slokoska 1991, cat. nos. 182, 225. 50 Janković 1983, 114–115; Popović 1992, 13–14; Petković, Tapavički‑Ilić 2020, 158–159, Fig. 63. 51 Petković, Tapavički‑Ilić 2020, 159. 52 Johns 1996, 45. 43 44 566 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU type II at H. Guiraud. This type found on the territory of Romania falls between the half of the 2nd century and the half of the next century, depending on the pieces with known context. The chronological framing falls within the general framing of the type that is used, with syncope, between the 4th centuries BC and the first half of the 3rd AD.53 2. Rings with the representation of a single snake, with two or more turns, with a parallel head and tail. Here the bronze rings from Apulum, together with the ring from site B06 from Arad are included, corresponding to type I from H. Guiraud and type A from C. Johns. They fall chronologically into the period from the end of the 2nd century to the beginning of the next one. 3. Rings with the representation of a single snake, with a spiral and the head biting its tail. The ring discovered at Ilișua is included in this type, corresponding to type III at H. Guiraud and type A from C. Johns. Chronologically, this type can be placed in the 3rd century, according to the typology of H. Guiraud. 4. Rings with the representation of two snakes facing each other, open link with two or more spirals and with the head and tail parallel. The ring of Poguior can be included in this type, along with the two silver rings discovered at Apulum. This type corresponds to type V from H. Guiraud. Unfortunately, in the absence of a proper context, the rings can be dated loosely to the period of the Roman province of Dacia, but given the degree of systematization, we propose to restrict this period to the 3rd century. 5. Rings with the representation of two snakes with opposite and parallel ends on the spiral, with two or more spirals. The golden ring, discovered at Tomis can be included in this category. It corresponds to type V from H. Guiraud and, mostly, to type C from C. Johns. According to the current typologies, this is a long‑lived type that survives throughout the Hellenistic period and up to the 4th century AD. On the territory of Romania, it is dated by the only discovery, in the period from the end of the 1st century and the beginning of the next. Hypotheses, discussions, conclusions... The 16 pieces54 referred to be rings were discovered in 11 locations on the territory of Romania, in sites located either in the Roman province of Dacia or in Moesia Inferior. The pieces were found in both military and civilian environments, being present in both necropolises and habitation areas, a situation similar to that of other finds from the territory of the Roman Empire. Also, in the Romanian collections there is a piece discovered outside the Roman border, in an autochthonous settlement. Gold and silver specimens generally appeared in important locations at the provincial level, related either to the administration of the province of Dacia, such as Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa and Apulum, or in rich sites and large commercial towns such as Tomis in Moesia Inferior, or militarily important ones, such as Noviodunum. There are also two more interesting situations, namely Poguior and Micăsasa. The first case, along with the ring from Ilișua, demonstrates that this type of jewellery is part of a series of penetrating models of jewellery from the civilian environment to the military one.55 Moreover, in the rest of the Empire, such rings are found in Guiraud 1975, 87. See the discussion related with the discovery of the artefacts from the p. 2 of this article. 55 This conversion or contamination, either from the civilian to the military environment or vice versa, is a characteristic of the period between the second half of the 2nd and in 3rd centuries and shows in fact the increasing importance that the military has within the government of the Empire and in society; in this sense, it must also be understood the concession made to the military by Septimius Severus, to wear a gold ring; another example of a fashion shared with the civilian environment is also that of jewellery inscribed with VTERE FELIX, VIVAS or 53 54 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 567 forts and fortifications, such as the finds from Niederbieber,56 Nymwegen, Saalburg, Zugmantel, Holzhausen, Pfünz,57 Vechten, Böhming58 or Horreum Margi.59 The fact that they also appear in military environments and their presence in the camps can be justified by several reasons including the presence of women in garrisons, by booty or fashion adopted by men. The second particular case refers to the presence of the two rings from Micăsasa in the ruins of the pottery workshops, a fact that made the author of the discovery state that they could have been used in rituals.60 Unfortunately, apart from the fact that two such pieces were found at short distance from each other, we have no other information that would entitle us to be categorical about their functionality and presence on the site. We believe, however, that the presence of these pieces can be related to the fact that Micasasa is a prosperous ceramic centre, in which ceramic products are decorated with more exotic motifs and among them, with the image of Isis and Sarapis. Some well‑known discoveries from Micăsasa are also two medallions depicting the image of Isis and Sarapis, both bearing cursive inscription, si(g)n(aculum) Myrini and therefore attesting this craftsman in relation with Isiac iconography.61 Other discoveries related with the cults of the Egyptians goods are a terracotta mould with the image of the bust of Sarapis found in the debris of kiln no. 3 in 1993, as well as a mould for creating terracotta busts of Isis found in 1981, in the praefurnium of kiln no. 1.62 However, in the absence of concrete evidence for this, we do not believe that the rings could have been used in rituals.63 As we have seen, among the craftsmen who worked here, there were at least admirers for the Egyptian cults, without being sure that the presence of these rings can be connected with this particular situation. Two other pieces were discovered during the preventive research conducted in the necropolises of Noviodunum and Tomis, both in inhumation graves, as part of the funerary inventory that accompanied the deceased to the underworld. Such rings appear in finds made in necropolises, as is the case with the finds from Regensburg,64 Cobern,65 L’escala‑Ampurias,66 at Mainz and Saft el Sina in Egypt ‒ where it was found on a woman’s right hand.67 They also appear in funerary representations. A known case is the representation of the woman named Isaious or Demetria, whose funerary mask was discovered at Hawara and dated to the 1st century AD. She wears on her right hand a ring with multiple spirals and two opposite snake heads68 (Pl. V/17). On a funerary shroud discovered also in Egypt, dated in the 2nd–3rd centuries and preserved fragmentarily, both hands of the deceased appear, loaded with rings and bracelets (Pl. V/18). It can be seen that on the ring finger of the right hand, she wears a ring with multiple spirals formed by a single snake whose head and tail are perpendicular to the spirals.69 The presence of MNHMONEYE alongside DEXTRARVM IVNCTIO, see Hamat 2014; Hamat 2016; Hamat 2017; Herodian, Istoria Imperiului Roman..., 3.8.4–5. 56 Henkel 1913, cat. no. 33, 6. 57 Henkel 1913, cat. nos. 344, 346–349, 48 and cat. no. 756, 77. 58 Henkel 1913, cat. nos. 743, 749, 76 and cat. no. 752, 77. 59 Petković, Tapavički‑Ilić 2020, 158–159. 60 Mitrofan 1993, 45. 61 Deac 2020, 121–122. 62 Deac 2020, 122–123. 63 The statement of I. Mitrofan, that such massive pieces could not be worn in everyday life is wrong, as indicated by the piece found on the hand of a woman caught by the eruption of Vesuvius at Pompeii, see Mitrofan 1993, 45; Baird 2015, 167–168. 64 Henkel 1913, cat. no. 750, 76. 65 Henkel 1913, cat. no. 757, 77; Riha 1990, 41. 66 Almagro 1955, 248, Fig. 221, no. 1. 67 Ogden 1990, 118. 68 Price 2020, 46. 69 MET Museum, inv. no. X. 390, see Nagel, Wolsfeld 2019, Abb 1. 568 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU this type of rings in the tombs should not be surprising, the snake is one of the animals associated with the underworld and at the same time with rebirth and therefore with the afterlife, which is why it also appears represented on funerary monuments. For a few of the rings of this kind, which come from funerary contexts and were manufactured from a very thin sheet of metal, it has been suggested that they would have hardly resisted being worn every day.70 Thus, it has been hypothesized that this type of jewellery would have been among the jewellery purchased to accompany the deceased, especially women and children, in to the underworld. Certainly, however, this situation cannot be considered an absolute law, because many of the jewels bear traces of wear and they are damaged by wearing. It is also worth pointing out that the ring discovered in the courtyard of the temple of Aesculapius and Hygea from Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa, seems to match the tutelary deities of the building. We do not know where, how and when it was discovered and therefore this remains a problem, in the absence of documentation. What is important is that rings with snake heads appear among the offerings dedicated to the gods, especially to Aesculapius, Hygea and Mercurius. This seems to be the explanation for the presence of this ring in the vicinity of the temple. Among the rings associated with a religious context, implicitly by their presence in the form of an offering, are those discovered in the Gurzuf Pass in Crimea, at Backworth, Caerwent, at Great Walsingham, in the triangular temple at Verulanium, as well as in the temple I at Springhead in Kent, all of which are finds dated between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD.71 The explanation of the presence of such rings in temples, also relates to the importance that open rings had in religious rituals,72 jewellery being also among the favourite objects to be dedicated to the gods.73 However, it should also be mentioned that many of the jewels found in religious complexes are not part of the temple’s religious inventory or donations, they are simply objects lost by the participants in the religious act.74 Such rings have also been found outside the Roman borders, which denote a copy of at least part of their functionality, as part of the Greco‑Roman fashion taken over by peoples outside the cultural border of the Hellenistic States or later the frontiers of the Empire75. The ring discovered in the Dacian settlement of Arad, site B06 (Pl. IV/16), is part of a series of discoveries of this kind, in the west of the Roman border of Dacia. A piece with snake heads facing each other has been discovered in a tomb at Martfű‒Zsófia Major and dated in the 2nd century AD, and another in the grave no. 7 from Tiszavasvári‑Városföldje Jegyző tag and dated to the end of the 2nd century – the beginning of the next.76 Another case of this kind is represented by the rings found in the temple from Gurzuf pass, on the south‑eastern shore of Crimea: the two artefacts can be regarded as an offering perhaps associated with Roman interventions in the area, at the end of the 1st century BC and the beginning of the next.77 In all these contexts, the multitude of materials makes us assume unisex usage of the rings, by all walks of life, adults and children, with a prevalence of discoveries associated with women Ogden 1990, 118–119; some of the specimens belonging to this type are made of thin metal bands by hammering, but there are cases, such as the Micăsasa rings or the Pompeii bracelet, when the pieces are made of solid gold, with a large weight, but are worn in everyday life, see Baird 2015, 167–168. 71 Cool 2000, 35; Novichenkova 2014, 149; Novichenkova 2016, 223. 72 See note 43. 73 Persius, Satire, 2, 18. 74 Cool 2000, 35. 75 In the first phase, pieces produced in imperial workshops are used, after which a phase of copying and reinterpreting the model in workshops of local craftsmen follows. 76 Bârcă, Gindele 2021, 97. 77 Novichenkova 2014, 149; Novichenkova 2016, 223. 70 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 569 and children. In Hispania, Gallia, Britannia, Germania, Italy, Greece, Thracia, Moesia Superior and Inferior, Egypt, Dacia or Crimea, such rings were made of gold, silver and bronze, with a special emphasis on precious materials in the first centuries of the Empire. From the second half of the 2nd century and in the first half of the next, the emphasis shifted to the use of bronze as the material from which they were fashioned. As mentioned, and without discussing in detail the inner diameters, it can be concluded that they were part of the unisex jewellery, worn even by children. A special case is a ring that is part of the funeral inventory of a child’s grave, discovered in Regensburg. Along with this jewellery, the inventory also included a silver wire necklace, two bracelets, a dolphin‑shaped box handle and a small bronze knife. The bronze ring with multiple spirals probably belonged to an adult and was wrapped more tightly, the spirals being forced to fit on the little one’s finger.78 This practice, of depositing objects belonging to adults, possibly relatives or even parents, in children’s graves, is common in the Roman world. It is primarily an apotropaic practice; the objects will guard the deceased youth in the underworld. On the other hand, it is also about the extension of the social, economic and even religious status of the parents on the child, through some objects that do not belong to him and which must legitimize him in the world beyond. The ring with cat. no. 5 could have belonged to an adult, converted into a child’s one, based on the very small diameter. In the cases of Tomis and Noviodunum,79 we can state that the artefacts are part of the funeral inventory of some women. Taking into account the diameter, the rings from Apulum, Ilișua, Arad and Ulpia Traiana could also have belonged to children or women, but we must also remember that both, the ring from Ilișua and the ring from Arad, can be very easily deformed by the conditions of preservations. Given the wide spectrum of functionality, we believe that a few words are also needed about the use of the image of the snake in the jeweller’s art, an ancient practice, as the chronology of the finds shows. For the Hellenistic world, its takeover from the East is the result of a process begun during the Greek colonization.80 From Asia Minor and the Hellenistic Kingdoms, this stylistic influence reaches the Celtic world, the Etruscan and later the Roman Republic and Empire. In the Balkans, the adoption of the motif has a long tradition, based on multiple influences. South of the Danube, jewellery decorated with snakes, especially silver bracelets ending with snake heads, appear among others also within the emblematic finds for the jeweller’s art,81 from Kladovo,82 Juhor,83 Chaoushevo or Nikolaevo.84 But the forms dated here in the 2nd‒3rd centuries, continues older, pre‑Roman traditions.85 Dacia is also a good example of taking over and transforming this motif. Before the Roman conquest, bracelets decorated with stylized snake heads86 are found in hoards dated between the 2nd century BC and the first half of the 1st century AD at Sacalasău Nou,87 Henkel 1913, cat. no. 747, 76. From Pliny we know that in addition to the intrinsic value of the jewel, there is also the apotropaic value of gold, it was placed on wounds and on children, because it was believed to protect the wearer from all evils, see Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXXIII, 84. 80 Ogden 1990, 116. 81 These findings contradict E. Swift who claims that such bracelets do not appear as a common type until Late Roman times, see Swift 2003, 25. 82 Popović 2001, Fig. 23. 83 Popović 2002. 84 Ruseva‑Slokoska 1991, 159. 85 Popović 2010, 101, 107. 86 D. Spânu pointed out that the registry of representations on Dacian jewels is not related to local snakes and there is the possibility of portraying fantastic reptiles as a product of the pre‑Roman mythological imaginary, see Spânu 2011, 3. 87 Toma 2013, 345. 78 79 570 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU Rociu,88 Bălănești,89 Sarmizegetusa ‒“Muchea cetății”,90 Feldioara, Marca,91 Sâncrăieni,92 Hațeg, Izvorul Frumos, Senereuș,93 București‒Herăstrău,94 but also in isolated finds such as Hetiur95 or Craiova.96 Rings with multiple spirals with snake‑shaped endings are also part of the treasure hoards of the same period, from Bălănești,97 Popești‒Argeș,98 Cioara99 or Măgura.100 Regarding the material, in these treasure hoards we find both gold and silver artefacts, with the specification that the rings are found only in silver variants. Along with these, we also have a necklace with stylized snake‑shaped heads, part of the treasure from Poiana‒Rovinari.101 After the conquest of Dacia, jewellery of this kind appears in several locations, mainly bronze bracelets.102 One of the most famous representations of jewellery with snake heads in Romania is found on the woman represented on an aedicula wall from Micia. She and her daughter wear a massive bracelet with multiple spirals finished with snake heads on their right wrist.103 This fashion is preserved in the following period, a few bracelets of this kind are part of the treasures considered to belong to the Germanic populations, discovered at Șimleul Silvaniei, but with a strong classical component represented by jewels of a Roman imperial tradition104 or influenced by it.105 Surely one of the questions that are raised in the case of this type of jewellery, is also one about the nature of the representations, namely whether real or fantastic snakes are represented. It turns out that only two types of snakes have gained notoriety106 in the Ancient world, in terms of jewellery decorations.107 The first of these is the Egyptian cobra or uraeus (Naja haje), one of the largest, most venomous and therefore most dangerous reptiles. The role it played in Egyptian culture is well known, the uraeus being the symbol of royalty and the sun, protector of the living, but also a deity in itself‑the snake‑headed goddess Meretseger or the goddess Wadjet.108 The cobra was also involved in the representation of the deities Isis and Sarapis, who in certain Măndescu, Oanță‑Mărghitu 2013, 361–362. Măndescu 2013, 366. 90 Oberländer‑Târnoveanu 2013a, 407–410. 91 Florescu, Miclea 1979, 35, 38–39. 92 Trohani 2013a, 417. 93 Spânu 2011, 4–6. 94 Spânu 2009, 104. 95 Spânu 2011, 6. 96 Spânu 2020, 180. 97 Măndescu 2013, 368–369. 98 Trohani 2013, 390. 99 Florescu, Miclea 1979, 31. 100 Mirea 2013, 391. 101 Știrbulescu 2013, 402. 102 Hamat 2011, 79–80. 103 Floca, Wolski 1973, 6, Fig. 3. 104 Florescu, Miclea 1979, 49, 58–59. 105 Daňová 2010, 390–391, cat. no. 1519. 106 In the Roman culture there are several types of snakes, part of which are fantastic reptiles as is the case of Basiliskos; on the appearances of snakes in Latin literature and art, outside the writings of Pliny, see Böhme, Koppetschh 2021. 107 Pliny lists several types of snakes in books 29 and 30, some of them mythological beings, along with their uses. We learn thusly that snakes have many uses. For example, they can help win a lawsuit, bring success to a petition, achieve invincibility, help easily extract arrows from the flesh, make childbirth easier, protect teeth, or even help achieve the universal cure, or make you understand the language of birds. The skin, head, tongue or other parts of the body are used, along with eggs, the mating ball, teeth, or even venom, see Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXIX, 52–55, 66–72, and XXX, 85, 110, 117, 122, 129. 108 Johns 1996, 37. 88 89 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 571 cases appear with a cobra body and a human head.109 Some rings in the form of a snake have the representation of the head or the bust of Isis replacing the head of the reptile. The most widespread image, however, is that of Zamenis longissimus, formerly known as Elaphe longissima from the family Colubridae, also called the serpent of Aesculapius.110 This is one of the largest European snakes, non‑venomous and therefore not dangerous to humans. The shape and length of this type of snake and its relatives were considered suitable for usage, especially in the making of rings and bracelets.111 Zamenis longissimus was mainly related to the cult of Aesculapius,112 but with representations also associated with the cult of other gods, from Isis, Sarapis, Jupiter,113 Mithras,114 Sabazios,115 Demetra and Persephone,116 Mercury,117 Bacchus,118 Hercules,119 Glycon,120 the Mother Goddesses of Britannia,121 and up to the abstract cult for Lares122 and Dii Manes123 or even with magical practices associated with Chnoubis.124 See the rings in the MET Museum collection with cat. nos. 24.2.29 and 10.130.1512, but also specimens from type C at C. Johns. 110 Pliny himself recalls this serpent of Aesculapius and its benefits, see Pliny, Naturalis Historia, XXIX, 72. 111 Guiraud 1975, 81. 112 Aparaschivei 2012, 29, 157, 164. 113 The recent discovery of the statue of an eagle in battle with a snake, in the east of the Roman necropolises in London, was connected by the authors of the publication with an inscription discovered at Apulum and associated with the representation of Jupiter guarding the living and the dead from the dangers associated with the underworld, see Lerz, Henig, Hayward 2017, 27–30. 114 The symbolism, connected both with the presence of the serpent within the representations of the tauroctony and of the cult vessels decorated with the representation of the serpent, has been much discussed, see Martens 2004, 46. 115 One of the animals that decorate the votive hands is the snake, this being also the oldest motifs and one of the animals used in rituals, being known that the snake sacred to this God is the snake of Aesculapius, see Berndt 2018, 154, 161–162. 116 It is known that in the Orphic tradition Zeus took the form of a snake and seduced Kore, who gave birth to Dionysus‑Zagreus, see Pingiatoglou 1991, 148; Pingiatoglou 2010, 186; Pingiatoglou 2015, 163; Tsiafis 2017, 224; snakes are associates of Demeter, serving her and pulling her chariot or that of Triptolemus; in this stance, they are represented on a series of sarcophagi dated in the 2nd century, among which we mention the so‑called sarcophagus of Triptolemus, see the piece kept at the Louvre, Department of Greek, Etruscan and Roman antiquities, Denon wing, Daru Gallery, Room B, AGRR 5 (3571) and the sarcophagus of Triptolemus of Aurelius Epaphroditus in the Pembroke collection, see Angelicoussis 2008. 117 The finds from Great Walshingham demonstrate the existence of a link between jewels with snake heads facing each other and this God; also, in the collection of the British Museum, cat. no. EA1539, there is a stela showing Dionysus with a serpent body alongside a serpentiform Isis; on the reverse of the coins of Marcus Antonius minted at Ephesus in 39 BC, we see Dionysus standing next to a mystical cista guarded by two snakes facing each other, a reference to the appellation of “new Dionysus” with which Marcus Antonius was greeted in Greek cities, whose power is guarded by the two snakes facing each other and associated with the God; the iconography of the snakes facing each other and guarding a cista magica is associated with either Marcus Antonius or Octavia and with the idea of guarding, preserving the alliance between him and Octavianus See also Cassius Dio, Roman History, XLVIII, 39; Crawford 1974, no. 393/1A; Mouline 2019, 237–239; the silver ring discovered in the sanctuary of Gurzuf pass falls in the same category. 118 See the rings with snakes and the knot of Hercules; see the representations on the gemstones of Hercules defeating the snakes sent by Hera to kill him; it seems that this type of representation can be considered an amulet that protected from snake bites, see Hamat, Streinu 2021. 119 Riha 1990, 41. 120 The cult of Glycon appears in the late 2nd century, Cool 2000, 35; Aparaschivei 2012, 183–185. 121 Cool 2000, 35. 122 The Fresco representation on two registers of Pompeii VIII, island 2–3 is famous; in the first register two lares and a genius are seen sacrificing at the altar alongside a singer and two servants, and in register 2, two snakes (agathodaimones), corresponding to the lares in registry 1, prepare to devour the offerings on the altar in their midst, see Museo Archeologico Nazionale in Naples, 8905. 123 Stamatopoulou 2016, Fig. 1. 124 Dasen, Nagy 2012. 109 572 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU The main symbolism related to this type of snake in the Greek‑Roman period is a beneficial one, being the representative of some protective deities and associated with healing, rebirth and the afterlife, which is why they are also present on the funerary stela, associated with the funeral banquet or the presence of the tree of Eternity.125 Negative connotations generally appeared within the Christian era, when the serpent was once again associated with the underworld, but this time in a negative way. Therefore, it was considered the embodiment or representative of the devil, which contributed to Eve’s fall into sin. The importance of snake jewellery in women’s wear, from the beginning of the 2nd century, is noted even by Clement of Alexandria, who vehemently expresses himself against their usage and marking them as a symbol of evil.126 H. Guiraud, in the first study devoted to the typology of these jewels, drew attention to the fact that the snake is an acolyte of Aesculapius and Hygea, protector of health and an emblem of immortality.127 The apotropaic side, can therefore be assumed for all jewellery decorated in this manner, which is why C. Johns would include them among jewels serving as amulets.128 Today it is considered that these jewels cannot only be associated with the gods of health. However, due to the fact that there are no extensive studies conducted on the association of such jewels in the treasure hoards or their presence in the temples, the particular associations with certain deities does not yet have a generally valid conclusion. However, the article written by H. Cool in 2000,129 brings up into the discussion precisely these situations, encountered in Roman Britannia. In addition to the gods of health, among the most important and oldest associations, is the association with Demetra. This also means the association with the cult of fertility, especially since the snake was believed to protect pregnant women and make childbirth easier,130 among other things. Therefore, this can also be one of the explanations of its presence on the hands of women. In Britannia jewellery with snake heads, also including bracelets, appear in treasure hoards throughout the 2nd‒3rd centuries,131 being also connected with the cult of the saviour gods, because the serpent is associated with rebirth and eternal life. The association between the cult of Mercury and bracelets with snake heads facing each other is demonstrated by a fairly recent discovery from Great Walsingham, where a temple in which statuettes of Mercury, Minerva and Jupiter were discovered. Along with the statuettes were found various objects deposited as an offering, and among them numerous adornments such as two bracelets with snake heads can be encountered, 132 facing each other. This discovery helped to validate the possibility of separation depending on the number and shape of snakes, namely those with snake heads facing each other could be associated with Mercury, while jewellery crafted from the representation of a single snake or from two snakes with opposite ends could be associated with Aesculapius133 or even with other gods. The association with Mercury is not accidental, Mercury’s caduceus surrounded by snakes symbolized peace and prosperity and therefore many barbarian peoples wore it, as Pliny informs us.134 Johns 1996, 37; on a naiskos dated to the Hellenistic period, the funeral banquet is depicted, the deceased is seated on the kline and holds a phiala in his right hand, behind it is seen the tree of Eternity from which the serpent descends to drink from the vessel, see Stamatopoulou 2016, Fig. 1. 126 Clem. Al., Paedagogus 2. 12, 123. 127 Guiraud 1975, 81. 128 Johns 1996, 12; Nagel, Wolsfeld 2019, 441. 129 Cool 2000. 130 See notes 106 and 115. 131 Cool 2000, 34. 132 Bagnall Smith 1999, 38. 133 Cool 2000, 34. 134 Plinius, Naturalis Historia, XXIX, 54. 125 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 573 Other associations can be made with Hercules, the legend of the hero who, as a child, defeated Hera’s snakes, is well known. Thus, the knot formed by snakes can sometimes be in the shape of the knot of Hercules and therefore the jewel acquires a much greater apotropaic power, other times the knot of snakes can be simple, with connotations related to fertility and renewal of life and therefore rings with this motif can also serve this function.135 A possible generalization may stipulate that among the gods associated with such jewels are Dii Consentes, the demigods, but also the newer gods who entered the Roman Pantheon from the provinces. This state of affairs reflects a motley religion, in which snakes link the new with the old and the future with the present and the past. Along with functionality, one of the most important aspects of using this type of jewellery is its introduction into treasure hoards and its hoarding that goes beyond the era in which jewellery was created. We have mentioned above some examples of pre‑Roman and Roman era treasure hoards from the Balkans, which also include jewellery decorated in this way. Some of the serpentiform rings were discovered in the treasure hoards, being found along with other jewellery with snake heads. Such is the case of a ring that is part of a hoard found in Zürich in 1868, the ring was deposited together with two bracelets with snake heads (the centerpieces of the hoard) and six other rings.136 One such ring was discovered at Adelberg, in a Frankish Tomb.137 The piece itself dates back to the 1st century, its reuse probably involving a spoliation, we doubt that it is a piece preserved for so long. Surely the ring was hoarded by the last owner, being preserved for its value, physical and spiritual, that it certainly had in his eyes. Treasure hoards with such jewellery were also discovered on the territory of Gaul at Villetelle‒Le Sablas,138 and in Britannia at Snettisham (Norfolk), Backworth (Northumberland), Castlethorpe (Buckinghamshire), Cadeby (South Yorkshire), Longton the treasure hoard from Lightwood (Stoke‑on‑Trent), Llandovery (Carmarthenshire), Slay Hill Saltings (Kent),139 Great Walsingham (Norfolk),140 Caerwent, in the triangular temple at Verulanium, temple I at Springhead in Kent.141 For the Balkan area, we mention Kladovo,142 Juhor,143 Chaoushevo or Nikolaevo,144 dated in the 2nd‒3rd centuries AD. The chronological period of this type, a situation that our confirmed by our artefacts, is the period of the 2nd‒3rd centuries, reaching the peak of their usage in the second half of the 2nd century and the first half of the next. The maximum period in which this type is used, however, is between the 1st and 4th centuries, throughout the Empire. They were certainly worn on the ring finger of the right hand, as the funerary finds alongside the depictions prove. Such a bronze ring was found on a finger bone in one of the Regensburg graves.145 At Cobern, the ring with snake‑shaped endings was located along with another ring on the same finger, the tomb was dated to the 3rd or 4th centuries.146 Also, on the funerary shroud discovered in Egypt, it can be seen that the deceased wears on the ring finger of her right hand, a See notes 106 and 118. Henkel 1913, cat. no. 41, 7. 137 Henkel 1913, cat. no. 37, 7. 138 Berdeaux‑Le Brazidec 2004, Fig. 7, no. 2. 139 Cool 2000, 29. 140 Bagnall Smith 1999, 38. 141 Cool 2000, 35; Novichenkova 2014, 149; Novichenkova 2016, 223. 142 Popović 2001, Fig. 23. 143 Popović 2002. 144 Ruseva‑Slokoska 1991, 159. 145 Henkel 1913, cat. no. 750, 76. 146 Henkel 1913, cat. no. 757, 77; Riha 1990, 41. 135 136 574 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU ring with multiple spirals with the head and tail of a single snake, perpendicular to the spirals.147 These representations help us answer the question, why were such rings made of solid metal used at a time when it is known that the preferences of buyers are moving towards polychrome style? Who manufactured them and why? Given the hypothesis launched by H. E. M. Cool, that the jeweler at Snettisham would have worked for a temple or religious association,148 it follows that such rings were probably a “limited edition” produced under certain conditions and in certain places, being worn by certain individuals, for a well‑defined purpose. Unfortunately, this hypothesis has not been sufficiently documented and demonstrated, and from this analysis, we cannot exclude the fashion factor. What we know for certain is that the wearing of these rings carries a multitude of valences based on information related to context, material, associations, general situation and analogies. From the value of the metal and the financial situation of the individual, to the apotropaic value of the jewel and to the discussions related to the attempts to assign them to the cult of a particular deity. It has been identified according to all the factors mentioned above with Aesculapius and Hygea, Isis, Sarapis, Jupiter, Mithras, Sabazios, Demetra and Persephone, Mercury, Bacchus, Hercules, Glycon, Apollo, the Mother Goddesses of Britannia and even with the cult of abstract deities. The image of snakes was used to decorate cult representations, bowls and utensils used in rituals, or various dedicated objects,149 including jewellery. And although today we discuss the many aspects of the functionality of these jewels, many questions still remain to which we have no answer, a situation that is also due to the fact that in the absence of more detailed contexts, we cannot yet draw a safe border between fashion, tradition, religion and magic. Catalogue The discussed pieces were presented in the catalogue in the following order: name of the piece; illustration; findspot (archaeological context); material; sizes; condition/state of preservation; dating; references; place of storage. 1. Ring. Pl. III/8. Apulum (Alba Iulia), the old collections; silver; D150: 20 mm; fragmentary artefact; 2nd‒3rd century AD; Bounegru et alii 2011, 82, cat. no. 124; MNUAI, inv. no. R3918. 2. Ring. Pl. III/9. Apulum (Alba Iulia), the old collections; silver; D: 20 mm; fragmentary artefact; 2nd‒3rd centuries AD; Bounegru et alii 2011, 82, cat. no. 125; MNUAI, inv. no. R3619. 3. Ring. Pl. IV/13. Apulum (Alba Iulia), praetorium consularis; bronze; D: 25 mm; fragmentary artefact; 2nd–3rd centuries AD; Bounegru et alii 2011, 83, cat. no. 128; MNUAI, inv. no. R3200. 4. Ring. Pl. IV/14. Apulum (Alba Iulia), municipium / colonia, research A. Cserni; bronze; D: 26 mm; fragmentary artefact; 2nd‒3rd centuries AD; Bounegru et alii 2011, 83, cat. no. 129; MNUAI, inv. no. R3195. MET Museum inv. no. X.390, see Nagel, Wolsfeld 2019, Abb 1. Cool 2000, 35–37. 149 The vessels decorated with snakes, both ceramic and glass, are an important category with a cultic and funerary functionality, being associated with the cult of several divinities – see Alicu 1980; Bolindeț 1993; Simion 1996; Cvjetičanin 2001; Alexandrescu 2007; Rusu‑Bolindeț 2007, 22; Cvjetičanin 2008; Ardeț 2009, 49–50; Dévai 2019; snakes are encountered in the decoration of medical instruments, see Varga 2015, 187. 150 Inner diameter. 147 148 Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 575 5. Ring. Pl. IV/12. Apulum (Alba Iulia), municipium / colonia, research A. Cserni; bronze; D. 13 mm; fragmentary artefact; 2nd‒3rd centuries AD; Bounegru et alii 2011, 83, cat. no. 130; MNUAI, inv. no. R3272. 6. Ring. Pl. IV/15. Arcobara (Ilișua), auxiliary fort; bronze; D: 11 mm; fragmentary artefact; 2nd‒3rd centuries AD; Isac, Gaiu 2006, 424, cat. no. 8; CMBN, without inventory number. 7. Ring. Pl. IV/16. Arad, site B06, settlement C41; bronze; D: 18 mm; complete artefact; end of the nd 2 ‒beginning of the 3rd centuries AD; Bârcă, Gindele 2021, 97, Fig. 8/1; CMA, without inventory number. 8. Ring. Pl. III/11. Ortelec, Poguior hill, Roman tower; silver; no mentioned dimensions; complete artefact; nd rd 2 ‒3 centuries AD; Finály 1904, Fig. 4; Cociș, Bejinariu 2019; disappeared. 9. Ring. Pl. III/5. Micăsasa, pottery workshop; silver; D: 27 mm; complete artefact; second half of the 2nd‒first quarter of the 3rd centuries AD; Mitrofan 1993, 44–45; no location, lost(?). 10. Ring. Pl. III/10. Micăsasa, pottery workshop; gold; D: 26 mm; fragmentary artefact; second half of the 2nd‒first quarter of the 3rd centuries AD; Mitrofan 1993, 44–45; MNIT, inv. no.V 34499. 11. Ring. Pl. III/6. Noviodunum (Isaccea), tumular necropolis, area C; gold; D: 17 mm; complete artefact; second half of the 2nd century AD; Paraschiv 2013, 435; ICEM, inv. no. 732. 12. Ring. Pl. III/4. 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Varga, Medical instruments in Roman Dacia: a survey beyond typology and functionality, Acta Musei Napocensis 52/I, 2015, 185–204. Ana Cristina Hamat National Museum of History and Achaeology, Constanța anahamat@yahoo.com Ștefan Viorel Georgescu National Museum of History and Achaeology, Constanța viorel.stefan.g@gmail.com Snake rings discovered in Romania Legend Silver Gold Bronze Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 583 Pl. I. 1. Map with the discoveries of snake rings on the Romanian territory (made in Google Earth, accesed in 13.07. 2022). 584 Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU 2 3 Pl. II. 2. Grave goods from tomb M1/ 17.04. 1986, discovered at Tomis (Constanța) (after Covacef 2013, 422); 3. Grave goods of the inhumation grave from a mound, discovered at Noviodunum (Isaccea) (after Paraschiv 2013, 435). Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 4 5 6 7 8 10 585 9 0 3cm 11 Pl. III. 4–7. Gold rings discovered at: 4. Tomis (Constanța) (after Covacef 2013, 424); 5. Micăsasa (after Isac 2013, 502); 6. Noviodunum (Isaccea) (after Paraschiv 2013, 435); 7. Ulpia Triana Sarmizegetusa (Sarmizegetusa) (photo by Oana Tutilă); 8–11. Silver rings discovered at: 8–9. Apulum (Alba Iulia) (after Bounegru et alii 2011, 124, 125); 10. Micăsasa (after Mitrofan 1995, Pl. 25/2); 11. Pogoior (after Pop 2008, 47, Fig. 39). Ana Cristina HAMAT, Ștefan Viorel GEORGESCU 586 12 13 14 15 0 3cm 16 Pl. IV. Bronze rings discovered at: 12–14. Apulum (Alba Iulia) (after Bounegru et alii 2011, 130, 128, 129); 15. Arcobadara (Ilișua) (after Isac, Gaiu 2006, 424, cat. no. 8); 16. Arad, site B06 (after Bârcă, Gindele 2021, Fig. 8/1). Serpentiform rings from the Roman period in Romanian Collections 587 17 18 Pl. V. 17. Funerary mask discovered in Egypt‑Hawara (after Price 2020, 46); 18. Funeral shroud discovered in Egypt (after Nagel, Wolsfeld 2019, Abb. 1).

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