Sale: CNG 78, Lot: 2222. Estimate $150.  Closing Date: Wednesday, 14 May 2008.  Sold For $200. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

GRECO-ROMAN. Amber Amulet. Circa 1st century BC-1st century AD. Amber amulet in the form of a finger ring with carved figure, apparently a coiled snake. Amber has crystalized, leaving a fragile friable surface. Ring size: 3 1/2 US; G British. Good condition. Very rare.

Amber, a fossilized plant resin, was known to the Greeks as ἡλέκτρον, or "sun stone". The main sources of amber in ancient times were along the shores of the Baltic Sea, and it was traded across all of Europe since Neolithic times. The material was valued for its apotropaic properties, its static electric effect thought to draw out bad "humors", and was used in small amulets and figurines which were highly prized. The figure on this ring is probably intended as an Agathadaimon serpent.