Le Médaillon en verre doré au portrait d'Aristion, deuxième moitié du IIIе siède apr. J.-C

The medallion of Aristion (D. 4.1 cm), an underappreciated object catalogued as “nineteenth-century,” has recently been rehabilitated as “ancient,” thanks to chemical analysis. This two-layer glass medallion consists of a blue ground and a colorless cover, separated by a finely incised gold-leaf design depicting the head and shoulders of a young woman with a Scheitelzopf (braided topknot) hairstyle typical of the period of Gallienus. The portrait is encircled by the inscription “ΑΡΙCTIΟΝ HKAΛΗ ΜΑΤΡΝΑ” (Aristion, the beautiful matron, to be understood as “Aristion, noble-hearted lady”). The terms used in the inscription underline her legal status as the wife of a Roman citizen, as well as her excellent reputation and moral qualities, and they associate her with Roman society in the Hellenized East. A study of the technology and style of the medallion connects it with a small series of exceptional portrait medallions dating from the third century A.D., which were clearly created for a highly privileged clientele.