Roman Silver Gold Plated Application Turned into Jewelry  Artifact with Cupids
Circa 50-150 A.D.
1.5 x 0.9 centimeters (2.37 grams)

Two cupids stand on top of two children, lifting up a a giant  kantharos (wine mixing vessel). It is apparent that this was worn in ancient  times as a piece of Jewelry. It is interesting because it brings up imagery of  Cupid, the son of Venus and the wine drinking symbolism of Bacchus, the Roman  equivalent of Dionysus.

Provenance: From  private collection in the United States of America.
Ownership History: From  private collection in the United States, bought in private sale in the United  States of America.

 You are bidding on the exact item pictured,  provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of  Authenticity.  

A  kantharos or cantharus is a type of Greek pottery used for drinking. In its iconic  "Type A" form, it is characterized by its deep bowl, tall pedestal foot, and  pair of high-swung handles which extend above the lip of the pot. The Greek  words kotylos (κότῦλος, masculine) and kotyle (κοτύλη, feminine)  are other ancient names for this same shape.

The kantharos is a cup used to hold wine, possibly for drinking or for ritual use or offerings. The kantharos seems to be an  attribute of Dionysos, the god of wine, who was associated  with vegetation and fertility.

It may not be a banquet-cup, but rather a vessel used in pagan cult as a  symbol of rebirth or resurrection, the immortality offered by wine, "removing in  moments of ecstasy the burden of self-consciousness and elevating man to the  rank of deity."

In Roman mythology, Cupid (Latin cupido,  meaning "desire") is the god of desire, affection and erotic love. He is often portrayed as the son of the goddess Venus, with a father rarely mentioned. His Greek counterpart is Eros. Cupid is also known in Latin as Amor ("Love"). The Amores (plural) or amorini in the later terminology of art history are the equivalent of the Greek Erotes.

Although Eros appears in Classical Greek art as a slender winged youth, during the Hellenistic period he was increasingly  portrayed as a chubby boy. During this time, his iconography acquired the bow  and arrow that remain a distinguishing attribute; a person, or even a deity, who  is shot by Cupid's arrow is filled with uncontrollable desire. The Roman Cupid  retains these characteristics, which continue in the depiction of multiple  cupids in both Roman art and the later classical tradition of Western art.

Cupid's ability to compel love and desire plays an instigating role in  several myths or literary scenarios. In Vergil's Aeneid, Cupid prompts Dido to fall in love with Aeneas, with tragic results. Ovid makes Cupid the patron of love poets. Cupid is a central  character, however, in only the traditional tale of Cupid and Psyche, as told by Apuleius.

Cupid was a continuously popular figure in the Middle Ages, when under Christian influence he  often had a dual nature as Heavenly and Earthly love, and in the Renaissance, when a renewed interest in  classical philosophy endowed him with complex allegorical meanings. In  contemporary popular culture, Cupid is shown shooting his bow to inspire  romantic love, often as an icon of Valentine's Day.

Legend

In the Roman version, Cupid was the son of Venus (goddess of hope) and Mars  (god of war).^[2][3]  In the Greek version he was named Eros and seen as one of the primordial gods (though other myths exist as  well). Cupid was often depicted with wings, a bow, and a quiver of arrows. The  following story of Cupid and Psyche is almost identical in both  cultures; the most familiar version is found in the Metamorphoses of Apuleius. When Cupid's mother Venus became  jealous of the princess Psyche, who was so beloved by her subjects that  they forgot to worship Venus, she ordered Cupid to make Psyche fall in love with  the vilest thing in the world. While Cupid was sneaking into her room to shoot  Psyche with a golden arrow, he accidentally scratched himself with his own arrow  and fell deeply in love with her.

Following that, Cupid visited Psyche every night while she slept. Speaking to  her so that she could not see him, he told her to never try to see him. Psyche,  though, incited by her two older sisters who told her Cupid was sparcker [a  monster], tried to look at him and angered Cupid. When he left, she looked all  over the known world for him until at last Venus told her that she would help  her find Cupid if she did the tasks presented to her by Venus. Psyche agreed.  Psyche completed every task presented to her, each one harder than the last.  Finally, Venus had one task left - Psyche had to give Pluto a box containing  something Psyche was not to look at. Psyche's curiosity got the best of her and  she looked in the box. Hidden within it was eternal sleep placed there by Venus.  Cupid was no longer angered by Psyche and brought her from her sleep. Jupiter,  the leader of the gods, gave Psyche the gift of immortality so that she could be  with him. Together they had a daughter, Voluptas, or Hedone, (meaning pleasure) and Psyche became a  goddess. Her name "Psyche" means "soul."

Portrayal

Caravaggio's Amor Vincit Omnia

In painting and sculpture, Cupid is often portrayed as a nude (or sometimes diapered) winged boy or baby (a putto) armed with a bow and a quiver of arrows.

On gems and other surviving pieces, Cupid is usually shown amusing himself  with adult play, sometimes driving a hoop, throwing darts, catching a butterfly,  or flirting with a nymph. He is often depicted with his mother (in  graphic arts, this is nearly always Venus), playing a horn. In other images, his  mother is depicted scolding or even spanking him due to his mischievous nature.  He is also shown wearing a helmet and carrying a buckler, perhaps in reference  to Virgil's Omnia vincit amor or as political satire on wars for love or love as  war.

Cupid figures prominently in ariel poetry, lyrics and, of course, elegiac love and metamorphic poetry. In epic poetry, he is less  often invoked, but he does appear in Virgil's Aeneid changed into the shape of Ascanius inspiring Dido's love. In later literature, Cupid is  frequently invoked as fickle, playful, and perverse. He is often depicted as  carrying two sets of arrows: one set gold, which inspire true love; and the  other lead-headed, which inspire erotic love.