2nd century B.C.
Gold plated silver
H. 1.7 cm, Dia. 11.1 cm
The bottom of this plate is flat with its edges expanding outward. The center of the base is decorated with a hammered, low-relief image of a ketos, a sea monster from Greek mythology. The head of this animal has a dog-like snout and raised pointed ears. The back has a spiked fish-like scaly ridge, and the tip of its coiled and raised tail is split into a crescent shape. The forelegs are fish-like fins, and the belly of the animal is decorated with reptilian scales. The style of this sea monster was established in around 5th century BC Greece, and during that period the Griffin, an imported mythical beast, was also fitted out with this scaly back ridge. The outer edges of the torso, the back fin and the forelegs are decorated with scant traces of gold plate, and thus we can see that originally the entire surface would have been coated with this applied gold.
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