ClassificationsGreek and Roman Art
Intaglio Gem Depicting a Teacher and Student
CultureRoman
PeriodImperial
Date1st Century CE
Credit LineGift of Beth Levine
DimensionsOverall (Gem): 1/2 × 3/8 × 13/16 in. (1.3 × 1 × 2.1 cm)
Object number2010.036.001
Label TextIn the Roman world, education was primarily reserved for the sons of the upper classes, although the daughters of Rome’s wealthiest sometimes received an education as well. This formal learning was modeled on the Greek system of paideia, and included instruction in Greek language, literature, and oratory, often from Greek tutors, who were sometimes enslaved. Here, a seated tutor, identified as Greek by his beard, encourages a male student as he recites from a scroll. The motif connotes status, privilege and wealth, rendered ideal by the figures’ nudity, and allows the wearer to present him- or herself as a member of the sophisticated, educated elite.Exhibition HistoryMaking an Impression: The Art and Craft of Ancient Engraved Gemstones, Michael C. Carlos Museum, August 27 - November 27, 2022
ProvenanceEx coll. Shani Kaplan (1926-2007), Atlanta, Georgia. Thence by descent.
Status
Not on viewCollections
- Greek and Roman Art
second half of the 1st Century BCE
late 2nd Century CE
1st Century BCE-1st Century CE
ca. 700 BCE
ca. 540 BCE
2nd Century BCE
mid 6th Century BCE
18th Century
