ENGRAVING ON PRECIOUS STONES. 159
A few Indian and Persian carnei of antique workmanship
are in existence, including, as one of the most notable, the representation of a Sassanian monarch, supposed to be Sapor II.,
the production of an Asiatic Greek. The portraits of this
ruler, whose reign extended through seventy-two years, are
very numerous. An intaglio upon emerald, with the figure of
Cupid teasing a goose, and an aquamarine engraved with Cupid
on a dolphin, both in the British Museum, are regarded by
judges as specimens of exquisite workmanship.
Busts and statuettes were frequently carved from solid gems
by the Romans. One of this character — a bust of the Emperor
Tiberius — occurs in the Florentine collection. Pliny refers to
the statue of Queen Arsinoë, four cubits in height, made of
topazion, which may have been peridot or agate.
Collections of Engraved Gems. — The best public collections
of engraved gems, says Mr. Streeter, are in Berlin, Vienna
Florence, Naples, St. Petersburg, Copenhagen, and London.
The British Museum is said to contain specimens of the finest
and rarest types of gem-engraving. For special collections, the
most worthy of note are those of the Barberini Palace, and of
the Duke Odescalchi, at Rome, and the Blacas, in the British
Museum, which comprises some of the most valuable in the
world ; but by far the largest number of these monuments
of art are to be found in the cabinets of noble and wealthy
amateurs.
One of the most extensive collections of engraved gems in
the United States is found in the Metropolitan Museum of
Art, New York, referred to in the chapter on " Collections of
Precious Stones." These engravings, if not so numerous as
those of some other countries, are valuable for the variety they
offer, as well as for the excellence of the stones themselves.
From this collection, a few specimens are selected, to give
