Sardonyx Cameo with a Man and a Woman on a Couch in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, February 2011

Title: Sardonyx cameo with a man and woman on a couch

Medium; Technique: Sardonyx

Culture: Greek or Roman

Period: Late Hellenistic or Early Imperial

Date: 1st century B.C.–1st century A.D.

Dimensions: L. 3.6 cm

Classification: Gems

Credit Line: Gift of Milton Weil, 1931

Accession Number: 31.55

Description:

The dolphin-shaped head of the couch and the shell symbolize Aphrodite, born of the sea. The attributes of Aphrodite are evidently merely symbolical, for the representation has an earthy flavor and may be a scene from a comedy.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/Works_of_Art/collection_database/greek_...