The Chatuzange Treasure is the name of an important

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

silver hoard found in the village of

Chatuzange-le-Goubet Chatuzange-le-Goubet (; Vivaro-Alpine: ''Chatusange e los Gobets'') is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. A hoard of Roman silver objects was found in the commune in the nineteenth century. Known as the Chatuzange Treasure ...

in the department of

Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Droma''; Arpitan: ''Drôma'') is the southernmost department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. Named after the river Drôme, it had a population of 516,762 as of 2019.

, south-eastern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Since 1893 it has been part of the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

's collection.British Museum Collection
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Discovery

In the district of La Part-Dieu near Chatuzange-le-Goubet, among the ruins of a large

Roman villa A Roman villa was typically a farmhouse or country house built in the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, sometimes reaching extravagant proportions. Typology and distribution Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD) distinguished two kinds of villas n ...

, a significant silver hoard was unearthed in 1888. The treasure, which consists of six pieces of antique dishes, seems to have been buried for safe-keeping, perhaps during the period of local insurrections that occurred at this time in

Roman Gaul Roman Gaul refers to GaulThe territory of Gaul roughly corresponds to modern-day France, Belgium and Luxembourg, and adjacient parts of the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany. under provincial rule in the Roman Empire from the 1st century ...

. It was discovered by the land-owner of the site who subsequently sold the treasure to a

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

art dealer An art dealer is a person or company that buys and sells works of art, or acts as the intermediary between the buyers and sellers of art. An art dealer in contemporary art typically seeks out various artists to represent, and builds relationshi ...

, who in turn sold it to the British Museum in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Description

The whole treasure is composed of six pieces of high quality Roman silver that dates from the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD and has a total weight of 5.6 kg. There are two

skillet A frying pan, frypan, or skillet is a flat-bottomed pan used for frying, searing, and browning foods. It is typically in diameter with relatively low sides that flare outwards, a long handle, and no lid. Larger pans may have a small grab ha ...

s, one of which is decorated with the figure of

Felicitas In ancient Roman culture, ''felicitas'' (from the Latin adjective ''felix'', "fruitful, blessed, happy, lucky") is a condition of divinely inspired productivity, blessedness, or happiness. ''Felicitas'' could encompass both a woman's fertility an ...

between two rosettes and below her a woman offering a sacrifice at an

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...

, while the other is adorned with the necks of

swan Swans are birds of the family (biology), family Anatidae within the genus ''Cygnus''. The swans' closest relatives include the goose, geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form t ...

s and a basket of fruit. Other items in the treasure include a large fluted washing-bowl with the figures of the Three Graces in the central panel, another fluted dish, a large plate and a small cup, both with a

niello Niello is a black mixture, usually of sulphur, copper, silver, and lead, used as an inlay on engraved or etched metal, especially silver. It is added as a powder or paste, then fired until it melts or at least softens, and flows or is pushed ...

inlaid

swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍) is an ancient religious and cultural symbol, predominantly in various Eurasian, as well as some African and American cultures, now also widely recognized for its appropriation by the Nazi Party and by neo-Nazis. It ...

, which was a relatively common symbol in the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

Gallery

Image:Chatuzange-BM-2.JPG, Another silver saucepan from the treasure Image:Chatuzange-BM.JPG, Fluted bowl with the three graces Image:Medallion Graces BM GR1893.5-1.2.jpg, Detail of the three graces on the bowl Image:Caubiac (3).JPG, Cup decorated with a central swastika Image:Chatuzange plate.JPG, Serving dish decorated with

engraved in niello

Bibliography

*D. Strong, Greek and Roman Silver Plate (British Museum Press, 1966) *L. Burn, The British Museum Book of Greek and Roman Art (British Museum Press, 1991) *S. Walker, Roman Art (British Museum Press, 1991) *Archaeological Society of Drôme (Vol. XXII. Page 340-345). * K. Painter, Le Tresor de Chatuzange in 'Tresors d'orfevrrerie gallo-romaine' (F. Baratte (ed)), 1989, Paris

References

{{reflist 1888 archaeological discoveries Archaeological discoveries in Europe Archaeological discoveries in France Ancient Greek and Roman objects in the British Museum Silver objects Treasure troves of France Treasure troves of late antiquity

Discovery

Description

See also

Gallery

Bibliography

References