Ca. 200 AD. A carnelian intaglio engraved with a scene of Leda and the Swan set in a possibly later gold ring. Leda, a princess from Aetolia, who would later become the queen of Sparta, was carried off by Zeus, king of the gods, in the form of a swan. According to a later mythological tradition, their sexual union would lead to the birth of Helen and Polydeuces, two major figures in Greek mythology. This myth, therefore, encapsulates the origin of the most important myths from the ancient world, for it is the rape of Helen which directly leads to the Trojan War, and the first work of literature in the western world: Homer's Iliad. Size: D:17.12mm / US: 6 3/4 / UK: N; 2gProvenance: From the late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister; from her collection formed 1960s-1990s.