This 19th century souvenir plaster molding of an intaglio seal is part of our Classics Department Collection.
Victorian English aristocrats commonly bought these items on their holidays in Italy. It was a common practice for them to do this and they collected their plaster moldings in large collectors cabinets which usually held hundreds of similar items.
The seal we have depicts the Trojan hero Aeneas carrying his father. According to Roman mythology, he carried his father from the burning ruins of Troy, and went on to found the settlement that eventually become the city of Rome.