The octagonal gemstones from Gordion: Observations and interpretations

Of the increasing number of Roman gemstones from Turkey published from museum and private collections, nearly all lack a secure archaeological context. Consequentially, it has been difficult to discuss the origin, production or dissemi¬nation of gemstones in Anatolia during the imperial period. Excavations in the cemeteries at Gordion have yielded over a dozen carved intaglios typical of the first to the fourth century AD. Three of the gems are cut in a relatively rare octagonal form, an eight-sided shape which achieved limited popularity during the late imperial period but has yet to receive scholarly treatment. The recent recovery of similar late Roman octagonals from other central Anatolian sites has indicated strongly that this particular gemstone type was popular and possibly produced locally in central Turkey. Examination of octagonals as a distinct group, via analyses of gem type, dimension, provenance, date and iconographic representation as evident in a newly-constructed corpus of 185 examples, appears to provide additional support for this theory. It is suggested here that the octagonal shape held numeric and symbolic significance among the military and early Christian communities of central Turkey, where a permanent workshop catering to that mixed clientele possibly existed in at least one of the principal urban centres, at Ancyra and/or Caesarea.