The Getty Gnaios

An amethyst intaglio depicting the Roman general Mark Antony and inscribed ‘Gnaios’ has been much lauded and frequently illustrated over the past fifty years. Other gems signed by this ancient engraver have been prized, replicated and forged for centuries. This article traces the amethyst, previously in the Ionides collection and acquired by the J. Paul Getty Museum in 2001, to the possession of Prince Stanislas Poniatowski, and demonstrates that, rather than dating to the late first century bc, it was cut by Giovanni Calandrelli between 1817 and 1824, apparently to complement a similarly inscribed gem thought to depict Cleopatra. The amethyst’s reception exemplifies the desire of collectors to possess creations of renowned artists, scholars eager to construct compelling narratives around superb works of art, and over-optimistic reliance on expert authority. ‘Master Gnaios’ even appears in well-researched historical fiction. Thus, the Getty gem is another demonstration of the enduring and transformative power of outstanding forgeries

Art · Art history · Cleopatra · Inscribed figure · Literature · Narrative · Possession (linguistics) · Visual arts · Ancient Egypt and Archaeology · Classical Antiquity Studies · Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies · Philosophy