GEMS, Engraving of, the glyptic art, gem sculpture or lithoglyptics; the art of represent ing designs on precious stones, either in raised work (cameos), or by figures cut into, or be low the surface (intaglios). The latter method was practised at a very early period, the oldest examples being the engraved cylinders found in Mesopotamia, and, more rarely, in Egypt. The art dates from at least 4000 B.C. and perhaps a millenium earlier. While there is no means of determining exactly whether it originated in Egypt or in Babylonia, the records and the re mains we possess seem to indicate that it was first practised by the Sumerians, who developed a high civilization in Babylonia before the ad vent of the Semites in that region, and that it was thence brought to Egypt. The designs rep resent divinities and objects of traditional or re ligious significance and the cylinder was pierced so that by passing a cord through the aperture it could be worn suspended either from the neck or from the wrist. It seems quite prob able that at the outset these engraved cylinders were worn to satisfy a religious or superstitious belief, but an almost equally prevalent use, and one that soon came to be the predominant one, was for personal signets, the so-called °rolling seals," for by rolling one of them over a sur face of freshly-baked clay, the impression of the intaglio would appear thereon in relief. The concave shape of the earliest cylinders hence indicates that the clay bricks on which they were pressed curved up toward the centre, while the slightly barrel-shaped cylinders sometimes made in Persian times were adapted for use on bricks of concave form. In Egypt the cylinder was at a very early period supplanted by the scarab seal, the precious material being given the figure of the sacred beetle (Scarabaus racer), with the legs closely drawn up beneath the body.
The first Babylonian seals antedated the use of writing, the designs representing divinities and symbolical objects, being so differentiated as to constitute each seal a personal mark; later on, with the invention of a form of writing, the design was frequently supplemented by the char acters denoting the name of the owner, and often by a brief invocation of one or more of the gods. Dr. Stewart Culin has conjectured that the cylindrical form may have been suggested by the still earlier use of short joints of reed for the same purpose. The earliest Babylonian cylinder seals that have been preserved are made of the core of a soft conch shell, or of a soft serpentine. In either case no special grav ing tools were needed. Later, however, from about 3000 B.C., many silicious stones were used, such as jasper and chalcedony, and it is prob able that the cutting tool employed was tipped with a fragment of corundum. Until about 1500•B.c. all the work was done with a free hand, there being no indication of the use of the re volving wheel at an earlier date. Other ma terials used for the early Babylonian cylinder seals were lapis lazuli, amazonite and white marble, and, somewhat later, from about 2000 B.C,, hematite and the blue chalcedony known as saphirine. Still later, several other stones were employed, there being even a very few jade cylinders.
Gem-cutting in the Greek world dates from at least 2000 B.c., and was first highly developed in Crete, this °Minoan" art having its best pe riod from about 1800 B.c. to 1600 B.c., and flour ishing down to about 1200 B.c. The Mycanean art of the Greek mainland had almost as early beginnings and flourished up to perhaps 1000 B.c., its best period being 1600-1400 B.c. The term °)Egean gems" is sometimes used to cover both those of Cretan and those of Mycenaean art. Later than this comes the so-called Archaic Greek art (600-480 B.c.), to be suc ceeded in turn by the best period of Greek gem cutting, dating from about 480 B.C. to 400 B.C.
Already in the time of Solon the custom of in casing cut stones as seal-rings appears to have been general among the Greeks. One of the earliest artists in this branch of whom mention is made is Mnessarchus, the father of the phi losopher Pythagoras, and consequently a con temporary of that Theodorus of Samos who engraved the famous emerald signet set in the ring of Polycrates, of which such wonderful stories are told by ancient authors. These early works were probably intaglios; the artist made use of the lathe, the corundum-point — possibly of the diamond point also ; indeed some have believed that diamond dust was used. However this very early use of dia mond is questionable, as there is no proof that it was known to Europe at such an early date. In the 4th century the most renowned gem-cut ter seems to have been Pyrgoteles, to whom Alexander the Great gave the exclusive priv ilege to engrave his likeness. The artists, whose names are but rarely engraved on their works, often took the masterpieces of sculpture for their subjects and models. Under the Roman emperors, in particular, this was quite common. The chief early Greek engraver whose name is known from extant works of his is Dexamenos of Chios (late in the 5th century). The gem engraved by Dexamenos the Chian, and bearing his full signature, was found at Kertch (the ancient Panticapieum) in the Crimea. It is a scaraboid, and shows a representation of a fly ing stork (pelasgos) the national emblem of Chios. This unique gem is in the great collec tion of the Hermitage at Petrograd. (C. W. King, (Antique Gems and Rings,) London 1872, p. 408). The names of Dioscorides, Apollonides, Aulos, Hyllos, Cneius, Solon, Evodus, remind us of some of the most perfect works of this branch of art, but many of the signed gems are forgeries, or old gems with famous names forged on them. However, no distinguishing names are borne by some of the greatest ancient works—the famous sardonyx of the Bibliotheque Na tionale (Paris) ; the apotheosis of Augustus, at Vienna ; the onyx at The Hague, represent ing the apotheosis of Claudius ; Achilles la menting Patroclus ; the head of Julius Caesar — these like the Brunswick vase and the Tri vulcian and Neapolitan cups, do not perpetuate the names of the artists. However two of the finest antique cameos of the Bibliotheque Na tionale are signed: the head of Maecenas cut on an amethyst by Dioscorides and the fine caipeo bearing the head of Julia, daughter of Titus, done on an aquamarine by Evodus. Pompey consecrated the dactyliotheca, or col lection of rings of Mithridates, as a votive of fering in the capitol, and Julius Czsar, six tab lets with six gems in the temple of Venus at Rome. At a later period the collections of Herodes Atticus, of Vespasian, etc., were cele brated; yet this general taste was not able to preserve the art from decline. One of the most noted antique gems, a head of Medusa carved • in a boss of translucent chalcedony, probably executed for Emperor Hadrian, was in the fa mous Marlborough collection. It was sold at Christie's in September 1918 for $8,750. The finest of the Marlborough gems, however, the splendid sardonyx cameo depicting the °Hy meneal Procession of Eros and is now in the Boston Museum, which acquired it in 1899, for $10,000. A most interesting class of gems was those produced under the influ ence of the Gnostic heresy, in the 2d and 3d centuries B.C. These are commonly known as Abraxas gems or Basilidian gems, the former designation referring to the symbolic figure rep resenting the divine principle Abraxas, and the latter to Basilides, the leading spirit in the founding of the principal Gnostic sect.