Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1906-02-16

The subject represents COnStan-
tine being crowned by a Victory stand
Ing behind him as he is borne in a
triumphant car with four horses, led
by a soldier. Behind the car stands
Clispus, son of Constantine, attired
in toga. and Fausta, wife of Crispus.
in full dress. AT the opposite end of
the design. in a similar position,
stands the mother of Constantine
Relen-she who found the true cross;
beside her is the soldier guiding the
horses
He Was Cheated.
In selling him his stone the sellers
gave the clew to its real history. 1t
was in a lapidarys shop in Enzendorf
in 1888 and for the sole purpose of
bunkoing Professor Sommerville IL
the ardor of its pursuit he overlooked
the essential point of testing fully the
truth of the history that was made as
readily as the stone ITSELF
Before Professor Sommerville ac-
quired this bogus treasure he exhibit
ed his already large collection in the
Museum of Art in New York. It at
tracted the widest attention and in
terest. He was the intimate friend Of
General l.. P. Di Cesnola, the direct
or of the museum, and was closely
associated with the archaeologists of
that institution. But even at that time
some of his most treasured stones
were base frauds. Among them was
one catalogued as No. 1926. "a curious
old turquoise" Achilles parting with
Deidamia his son Neoptolemus. This
turquoise has lost it's original bright
blue color with age, as is the case
with all in this collection. The arms
and legs are cut entirely in relief.
A straw can be placed under them in
several places. Probable date, the first
years of the lower empire"
Cut in Same Shop.
1t was acquired at a cost of $1,000.
1t is now shown to have been cut in
1885 in Enzendorf, in the same shop
that produced the Triumph of Con.
stantine." In the same catalogue is
No. 143, an oriental sardonyx of Claud
ius, fourth emperor of Rome. "This
| cameo was cut in the epoch of Claud
| ius.'
It. too, has been traced to Enzen
,'orf. A maculated agate represent
ing Philip the Arabian and his wife
Otacila in oriental chalcedony. por
a cameo in sardonyx, the design
showing cupid driving a lion and q
goat-"He drives the lascivious and
the strong" These were all includes
in the New York exhibit and are now
shown to have the same source-fron1
Enzendorf
But while EnZendOrf figures in the
origin of so many of the stones, il
Inv f1n
Some were cut in Prague and al
Frankfort-on-Main, at Amsterdam and
in Paris and at Birmingham in Eng
land. The latter place is the source
OF nearly the whole output of scarabs
cut or petrified beetles, inscribed. tina,
are buried with the ancient Egyptians
in their catacombs. 1t has long beer
known that these much sought mem
orials are made in Birmingham anf
emptied into the tombs at the Pyr
amids and at Thebes by the bucket
full. They are brought out by the
Arab guides to supply the large de
mand Of tourists. Prof Sommerville's
J collection of scarabaei was one of the
: largest in the world, as it was also
ont OF the most complete. The in
; scriptiOns upon them furnished o.
tensibly a contemporaneous record o.
the whole dynasty of the shepert
kings. While their character is mo-
fully established, it is deemed likel,
that they were made chiefly in 1873:
in the Birmingham shop.
History Of Expose.
The history of this expose is curious
in itself. At the time of the st. Loui.
exposition Prof. Furtwrangler, head o.
: the archaeologic division Of the Berlin
museum, came to this country. He