We have seen how large a proportion of the subjects on ancient gems were mythological, how extended was the class of religious and of Christian subjects; we have noted the loved portraits of sovereigns, statesmen, philosophers, physicians, and poets.

There remains a series worthy of notice—those intaglios and cameos worn as amulets on which were engraved innumerable animals, birds, fishes, and even insects.

As the families of the nobility chose the insignia which entered into the quarterings of their escutcheons, so the ancients according to their superstitions or their tastes chose some patron animal or bird for an emblem and caused it to be engraved on their talismans; and these symbols were cherished with what might almost be termed religious fervency.

They were used as amulets, supposed to protect the wearers against accident and to repel danger. There was almost a pharmacopoeia of gems, with solace for every trouble of mind and a remedy for every disease.

A dolphin, the mariner’s friend, on sard or carnelian, was an emblem worn by fishermen, and was believed to protect them from the attacks of sharks or other voracious fishes. They also carried with equal reliance the same design in antique paste.

The eagle of Jupiter is symbolic of his power, although it was subservient to him. This no doubt accounts for its appropriation in heraldry by sovereigns.

The raven, the friend of Apollo; the parrot, a loquacious inebriate, is often an attendant on Bacchus.

The aringa, a fish of the Adriatic Sea, represented on a talisman in my collection, was worn by women on account of its being the symbol of fruitfulness; it deposits many thousand eggs each year.

Certain insects, arachnids, and reptiles were employed as symbols, because they were supposed to protect man in each case from the enemy thereon delineated.

A scorpion on a transparent stone was an amulet against the sting of the arachnid.

As the scorpion inflicts a painful sting, the spider a venomous bite, and a variety of flies make dangerous aggression on the human form, their images engraved on stones were believed to shield the wearer from the ills due to attacks from corresponding insects.

One of the most minute insects employed as a talisman is the ant, symbolic of industry.

The peacock frequently appears on gems; naturally, no one would have had it as an emblem of vanity, in which sense it is generally accepted in modern times, but it was revered as the favorite of Juno.

The owl: Minerva’s head is at times draped with an owl; its connection with Minerva is that it is symbolic of profound meditation.

Beautiful storks occur frequently on engraved gems: they were so abundant in Asia Minor and in the Byzantine Empire that husbandmen sought to frighten them away; yet in other lands they were almost adored. In modern FÜnen, and generally in Scandinavia, storks building their nests on the roofs of houses in the country are welcomed as bringing children for the household, and are cared for with a credulity equalling pagan superstition.

The frog has sometimes found a place in Christian symbolism as the most expressive image of the resurrection of the body, because frogs, like the serpents after their winter interment, emerge from their hiding-places and renew their youth by casting their slough.

Many farm and house companions figure in the series: a dog, fidelity; a cock, vigilance; a turtle, always at home; a snail, there is no hurry; a sheep, humility; a lamb, innocence; a horse, patience and endurance; a dove, harmless, the Holy Spirit; a lion, majesty and force; a serpent, wisdom, and, with its tail in mouth, eternity; a serpent was often represented on the stone above the fireplace in Roman kitchens; a ram was significant of the Nundine sacrifices made weekly to Jupiter; a lion and a goat driven by Cupid, the power of love: he guides not only the lascivious, but the strong.