Roman ROMA Plate Brooch
2nd-3rd century A.D. A bronze discoid plate brooch with openwork monogram of 'ROMA', hinged pin and catchplate to the reverse. See The Portable Antiquities Scheme, record id IOW-DA5661, for a similar example. 10.2 grams, 31 mm (1 1/4 in.). Acquired before 2000.From the collection of a European gentleman living in the UK. The brooch is engraved with the stylised letters ‘RMA’. When viewed from the obverse, RMA and the framing circle form a monogram for ‘Roma’. Roma refers to both the city and its divine personification, the Dea Roma. If RMA is read from right to left (or the brooch is viewed from the opposite side), the letters form a monogram for ‘AMOR’, the Latin name for Cupid, the god of love. The phrase pertains to Roma-Amor, a widely recognised palindrome espousing Roman wordplay in the ancient times.