Some opulent women’s tombs in the Rhine-Meuse region contain luxurious jewellery and figures sculpted in precious materials that were considered magical or therapeutic in ancient times. The tomb at Cortil-Noirmont yiedeld a ring and a figurine of a lizard in rock crystal, along with three amber objects: a carving of a seashell, a necklace and a brooch.
The lizard, whose alert pose has been deftly rendered, is fashioned from a single piece of very pure hyaline quartz, symbolizing the eternal ice that would protect the deceased when crossing the Pyriphlegethon, the flaming river of Hades.