Harvard Art Museums > 1977.216.2202.8: Ligula Tools and Equipment Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Ligula , 1977.216.2202.8,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Nov 06, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/141854. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 1977.216.2202.8 Title Ligula Classification Tools and Equipment Work Type medical instrument Date 1st-4th century CE Places Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Europe, Rome (Latium) Period Roman Imperial period Culture Roman Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/141854 Physical Descriptions Medium Copper alloy Technique Cast Dimensions 18 x 0.8 cm (7 1/16 x 5/16 in.) Technical Details Technical Observations: The patina is grayish green. There are small surface losses, but the object is otherwise intact. The ligula was made by casting the rough shape and then working to further shape it and finish the surface. Carol Snow (submitted 2002) Provenance Recorded Ownership History Harold Wilmerding Bell, Cambridge, MA (by 1911), gift; to the Department of the Classics, Harvard University (1911-1977), transfer; to the Fogg Museum. Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Transfer from the Department of the Classics, Harvard University, Gift of H. W. Bell Accession Year 1977 Object Number 1977.216.2202.8 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums This ligula has a thick, diamond-shaped pan with a shallowly curved bottom set at a very slight angle. The circular-sectioned shaft tapers to a blunt tip (1). Greek and Roman medical instruments, many of which were described by ancient authors, have been found, sometimes in sets, throughout the ancient world (2). The instruments could have been used for more than one function, making precise classification difficult in some instances. A ligula is a probe with a small scoop on one end, positioned at an angle to the shaft; the scoop was used to remove ointments and powdered medicines from containers and perhaps also apply them (3). NOTES: 1. A similar instrument is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, inv. no. 17.230.110. 2. J. S. Milne, Surgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Times (Oxford, 1907) 1-9; and D. Michaelides, “A Roman Surgeon’s Tomb from Nea Paphos,” Report of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus, 1984: 315-32, esp. 321-23. 3. Milne 1907 (supra 2) 77-78; Michaelides 1984 (supra 2) 325; R. Jackson and S. La Niece, “A Set of Roman Medical Instruments from Italy,” Britannia 17 (1986): 119-67, esp. 157; and L. J. Bliquez, Roman Surgical Instruments and Other Minor Objects in the National Archaeological Museum of Naples (Mainz, 1994) 48-49. David Smart Subjects and Contexts Ancient Bronzes Related Works 1977.216.2201.11 Ligula Tools and Equipment 1977.216.2201.12 Ligula Tools and Equipment 1977.216.2201.9 Ligula Tools and Equipment 1977.216.2201.10 Ligula Tools and Equipment 1977.216.2202.10 Ligula Tools and Equipment 1977.216.2202.9 Ligula Tools and Equipment 1977.216.2202.11 Ligula Tools and Equipment 1932.56.36.6 Ligula Tools and Equipment 1992.256.111 Ligula Tools and Equipment Verification Level This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu