Worked in one piece, this gold ring has the boat-shaped hoop characteristic of Greek signet rings of the period: thin and ridged at the shoulders, flaring dramatically to support a broad, flat oval bezel. Unlike the thicker, all-round hoops typical of Roman gold rings, the bezel here sits proud of the hoop as a wide, thin plate, with the intaglio engraved directly into the gold rather than set as a separate stone.

The engraving shows a mature male head in profile, facing left: a bald or balding crown, a deeply furrowed brow, a downward-curving nose, and a beard worked in tight, controlled curls, with drapery indicated across the shoulder. The severity of the expression and the absence of any wild or hedonistic detail rule out a satyr, Pan, or Silenus, while the open, clearly modeled eye and the shape of the nose argue against both Homer and Socrates. The type most closely follows the bald-and-bearded formula used across antiquity for austere Greek philosophers, Stoic or Cynic in character.

The surface carries numerous fine scratches and small areas of pitting consistent with genuine age and long handling.