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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

silver hoard found in the village of Chatuzange-le-Goubet 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 located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Since 1893 it has been part of the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

's collection.British Museum Collection
/ref>

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 in the territory of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, sometimes reaching extravagant proportions. Nevertheless, the term "Roman villa" generally covers buildings with the common ...

, 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 adjacent parts of the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany. under provincial rule in the Roman Empire from the 1st century B ...

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

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

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 relationsh ...

, who in turn sold it to the British Museum in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

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 skillets, one of which is decorated with the figure of Felicitas 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 religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

, while the other is adorned with the necks of

swan Swans are birds of the genus ''Cygnus'' within the family Anatidae. 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 the tribe (biology) ...

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 push ...

inlaid

swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍, ) is a symbol used in various Eurasian religions and cultures, as well as a few Indigenous peoples of Africa, African and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, American cultures. In the Western world, it is widely rec ...

, which was a relatively common symbol in the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

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

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

Discovery

Description

See also

Gallery

Bibliography

References