ABSTRACT
There has been, since the Renaissance, a greater demand for the artefacts of Greece and Rome than finds of actual antiquities could supply. Engraved gems and cameos, in particular, were highly prized by collectors, and many of the finest ‘Greek’ and ‘Roman’ gems in museum collections today are products of the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries. Indeed, although the antiquity of many an ancient gem is easily determined with a little experience, and while many non-ancient gems are readily recognized, there is a whole middle ground, mostly of engraved gems and cameos of the highest quality, where even the most expert student of the subject can have no certainty, but can only guess. Gems and cameos both ancient and more recent come occasionally onto the market, but there can be few artisans these days skilful enough to produce forgeries of really fine gems. However, more and more interest is being shown of late by collectors, and good forgeries might well start to be made again.
