Ancient Greek Gold Beaded Dolphin Pendant

£ 600.00

An extremely fine example of Greek Hellenistic goldsmith art, a beautiful high karat gold pendant, composed of a gold bar with a stacked row of coral, turquoise beads and a pearl interspersed with flat gold disks and a granulated gold bead. The pendant is further enriched by two dolphins, modelled from a thin sheet of gold, one at each side of the suspension loop, featuring some very delicate detailing, such as the fins and tail. Such pendant has been adapted from an earring in ancient times, with the suspension loop modelled from ancient gold. Weight: 4.93 g.

Date: 5th – 3rd Century BC
Provenance: Ex Abelita family collection, 1970s-2000s.
Condition: Extremely fine. Suitable for modern wear with care.

SOLD

Product Code: GS-65
Category: Tag:

As in many ancient societies, jewellery was an important social marker used to demonstrate wealth and richness. In Ancient Greek culture jewellery was worn in everyday life but was also buried with the deceased as part of his or her funerary outfit. Jewellery might have been enriched by precious and semi-precious stones and decorative motives would have included popular myths, gods, goddesses, and heroes. In Ancient Greek and Roman mythology dolphins were associated with the sea and with the sphere of sensual love, bearing an amatory symbolism. Because of the assonance between the ancient Greek word delphis, δελφίς, meaning dolphin, and the word delphus, δελφύς, meaning womb, dolphins were considered animals sacred to Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, fertility and desire.

To discover more about jewellery in the Ancient World, please visit our relevant post: Jewellery in Antiquity.

Dimensions L 3.1 cm
Region

Southern Europe

Metal

Gold

Semi-Precious Stone

Turquoise