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Artemis Fine Arts will open live bidding for its Ancient Rings, Antiquities & Ethnographic Art sale on October 23, 2026. Curated by Bob Dodge, the online auction features an exceptional lineup of ancient and medieval gold and silver rings from the Roman, Byzantine, and early European worlds—each scientifically XRF-tested for age and metallurgical purity. The diverse catalog spans millennia of global material culture, offering buyers a rare assortment of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern, Asian, Pre-Columbian, and Native American antiquities alongside ethnographic and fine art. Rare Prehistoric Plesiosaur Complete Skull, Zarafasaura oceanis. Estimate: $9,000 - $13,000.

20th C. Ashanti Carved Wood Stool or Headrest with Hunters and Lion. West Africa, Ghana, Ashanti. A carved wood stool or headrest in which a hunt in progress holds up the seat. The gently curved, winged top rests on a lion and two hunters, all carved together with a rectangular plinth. One man lies on his back with the lion's paw pressed on his chest. He thrusts a knife up toward the roaring animal, and his rifle lies uselessly beside him in low relief. Estimate: $1,000 - $1,500.

Persian Silk Qum Low Pile Rug with Medallion, Flowering Vases, and Birds. Central Asia, Iran (Persia). A hand-knotted silk-pile rug in a Qum design with a rust-orange field and a lobed central medallion. The medallion has an ivory center with a small floral rosette, framed by a band of rosettes set in a lattice. The field is filled with flowering vines, vases of flowers, and small birds, and the four spandrels hold a dense lattice of rosettes. Estimate: $1,000 - $1,500.

African Akan Culture 18K Gold Foil & Wood Bird Finial for Staff. West Africa, Ghana, Akan peoples. A carved wood and gold foil finial in the form of a bird perched on a barrel, made to top the staff of an okyeame, the linguist who speaks for a chief. The wood is covered in thin pressed gold foil, which is 76% gold and 15% silver, equivalent to more than 18 karat. Linguist staff finials often illustrate proverbs about leadership and wisdom. Estimate: $1,000 - $1,500.

Native American Charmstone Head, Northern California. Native American, Northwestern California. A carved stone effigy head, worked from a rounded cobble into an abstracted anthropomorphic form, with a ridged brow, raised nose, and incised mouth. A single drilled perforation pierces one side. The surface shows a weathered, pitted patina consistent with age. Estimate: $1,200 - $1,800.

Three Qing Dynasty Jade Pendants | Dragon & Scroll. East Asia, China, Qing Dynasty. China, Qing Dynasty. Group of three carved jade pendants. The first is a composite pendant of pale celadon jade with russet inclusions, incorporating a disc-form element with a central perforation, surmounted and framed by carved confronting dragon or beast forms, the disc itself carved with a dense field of comma-scroll motifs. Estimate: $1,500 - $2,250.

Cecilia Mayr Mixed Media Painting - "Mosaicos #M1". Cecilia Mayr (Brazilian, b. 1955). "Mosaicos #M1" mixed media painting on paper, n.d. Signed at lower right and titled at lower left. A luminous patchwork of memory and meditation, "Mosaicos #M1" by Cecilia Mayr is a celebration of color, texture, and the emotive potential of structure. Eight chromatic squares, arranged in a balanced grid, emerge from a richly mottled surface of ochres, siennas, and smoldering earth tones. Estimate: $1,100 - $1,650.

Hohokam Sacaton Phase Mountain Lion Effigy, Possible Whistle - TL Tested. Native American, Hohokam, Sacaton phase. A four-legged creature modeled in buff earthenware, its body a smooth elongated barrel raised on four sturdy tapering legs, the head lifted and thrust forward on a thick neck. The modeling is deliberately spare: shallow depressions mark the eyes, the muzzle terminates in a blunt snout, and a small perforation pierces the side of the head. Estimate: $1,300 - $1,900.

3 Roman Intaglios - Garnet Dolphin, Carnelian Pan & Glass Nike. Roman, Imperial period. A trio of miniature engraved gems, each cut in intaglio for setting into a finger ring and pressing into wax. The first, in red glass, carries a winged Nike striding right with a victory wreath raised before her. The second, in carnelian, presents the bearded head of Pan in profile to the left, the goat horns curling back from his brow. Estimate: $1,200 - $1,800.

Early 20th C. Peking Chinese Wool Rugs - Pair with Medallions. East Asia, China. A pair of Chinese Peking hand-knotted wool mats, each with a round floral medallion in blue, cream, and brown on an open peach field. The spandrels are set with stepped fret corner brackets, and the borders carry a polychrome diagonal stripe pattern derived from the lishui stripe on Qing court robes. Colors include peach, indigo, cream, tan, and brown. Estimate: $1,200 - $1,800.