James tassie’s gem is alive again
Hercules Intaglio Ring
James Tassie (1735–1799), the Scottish gem engraver, reproduced classical intaglios in vivid glass pastes, preserving the iconography of the ancient world for Enlightenment Europe. The figure of Hercules, originally taken from a celebrated antique model,
is here reinterpreted as a jewel.
This new ring revives Tassie’s cobalt-blue glass intaglio in a modern high karat gold setting, bringing his 18th-century gem back to life for the present.
This piece reanimates Tassie’s 18th-century cast of ancient cameo, transforming his scholarly reproductions into a wearable jewel.