An extraordinary circular bezel from a late Roman silver ring, bearing a seal, with an engraved male portrait and a Latin legend arranged in a circle: LAVRENTI VIVAS FRAT(R)I. The inscription, engraved in negative, allows it to be read in positive as a seal, and can be translated as: "From Laurentius. May you live. For his brother," or, in a more literary formulation, "From Laurentius: May you live, brother." This is an exceptional piece of late antique private goldsmithing and epigraphy. The bezel, made of silver and preserved without its original band, features a portrait with strong imperial and military influences, with a beardless bust, short hair draped with a fibula, in keeping with the visual styles of the second half of the 4th century AD. The piece is absolutely unique: the epigraphic sequence uiuas frat(r)i had not been documented until now, making this bezel a true one-of-a-kind within the repertoire of Roman inscribed rings. Added to this is the rarity of combining, in a single silver piece, a private portrait, an affectionate inscription, a signatory function, and a Late Antique context. More than a mere personal adornment, the bezel constitutes an exceptional testimony to identity, family memory, and epigraphic culture in the final centuries of the Roman Empire. Published in the prestigious journal Latomus 83/4, 2024, pp. 755-758, of the Société d'études latines de Bruxelles.
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