Ancient jewellery: Iraq

Ancient jewellery: Iraq

by | Ancient jewellery, Cultures & People

Jewellery history of Mesopotamia

Ancient jewellery from Iraq

Published March 9, 2025

When we talk about the beginnings of jewellery history, few places are as important as Iraq — ancient Mesopotamia. From the royal tombs of Ur, with their breathtaking hoards of gold, to the tiny glass beads produced in early workshops, the region offers a vivid picture of how people used jewellery to express power, belief, and identity.

These finds are not just beautiful ornaments. They reveal the skills of Mesopotamian craftsmen, the reach of early trade networks, and the ways jewellery was tied to life, death, and status. Looking at the jewellery of ancient Iraq means looking at some of the oldest traditions of adornment in the world — traditions that influenced cultures far beyond the Tigris and Euphrates.

This blog is part of my series on Ancient Jewellery, exploring how adornment shaped identity across the Middle East and Mediterranean. You can also read about jewellery from ancient Syria, ancient jewellery from Lebanon, and more to come.

Iraq’s early jewellery history: Mesopotamian gold, beads & trade

Iraq is home to the two rivers that provided the perfect circumstances for early civilization: the Tigris and the Euphrates. The ancient name ‘Mesopotamia’ refers to these two rivers, as it literally means ‘between rivers’.

The rivers provided not only fertile ground but also formed trade corridors with southern Anatolia as well as with the Indus Valley to the east. It is not surprising that these circumstances gave rise to some of the earliest cities and city-states.

In the north of Iraq, near current-day Mosul, Tepe Gawra was a site that has been inhabited from 5,000 BCE onwards until 1,500 BCE. It’s from this place that the earliest use of gold in Southwest Asia has been preserved: wire and beads form telling tales of both technological achievements and trade.

Tepe Gawra grew into one of the earliest industrial cities, bringing wealth to an upper layer of its inhabitants, and that shows in the burials of the late 4th millennium. Gold rosettes and beads, lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, and turquoise from Sinai all testify to the trade hub that Tepe Gawra was.

 

The gold of Ur & elite burials: jewellery significance in royal tombs

In the south of Iraq, the city of Ur was a major urban site in ancient Sumer. Its cemetery of thousands of burials, dating to around 2,500 BCE, is world famous. Only a few of these contained abundant riches, and thus were called ‘Royal Tombs’ by their excavator, Leonard Woolley.

Although some of the deceased were indeed of royal status, the majority were elite members, courtiers and attendants, buried together with their ruler.

The burials contained lavish jewellery sets in gold, carnelian and lapis lazuli, and it has been proposed that the jewellery items with which each individual was interred, were somehow linked to their status and position.

Certain jewellery items are only used for men, where others are mainly worn by women. A further differentiation may be seen between royal and priestly elite members. Jewellery here does not only communicate wealth, but also complex organizational structures.

Jewellery of Queen Puabi: power, ritual & female adornment

Probably the most well-known burial in Ur is that of Queen Puabi. She was buried with copious amounts of jewellery in gold, lapis lazuli and carnelian.

As the roof of her tomb had collapsed in the past, it has been difficult to reconstruct the jumble of beads and other ornaments into the objects we are familiar with today. Her spectacular jewellery is also significant for more than just status and power. Recent research by Kim Benzel has shown that it may very well also have been charged with ritual or magic power.

In Puabi’s jewellery, references to fertility are abundant. Vegetation and floral motifs abound, and what is more, the use of gold seems to be focusing on the upper part of the body: as if in death, she was a radiant goddess in an aura of vegetation.

Assyrian jewellery & ornament in northern Mesopotamia

In the north of Iraq, the kingdom of Assyria flourished. Here, cities like Nineveh and Nimrud bloomed. In Nimrud, ancient Qalhu, in particular, four rich tombs have been excavated at the end of the 20th century by the Iraqi Department of Antiquities.

Two queens were found buried together, Queen Yaba’, the wife of Tiglath-pileser III, and Queen Ataliya, who was married to Sargon II. From the excavation it became clear that the queens were dressed in fabrics that were embellished with countless gold ornaments shaped like stars, rosettes, wheels, discs, and triangles, along with jewellery like diadems, bracelets, anklets, rings and earrings.

The level of workmanship achieved is superb: the woven diadem of Queen Yaba’ is technically very difficult to create. The use of eye agates is one of the ancient precursors of eye beads as they are still used today.

Glass beads and trade: ancient Mesopotamia’s bead production 

Glass beads excavated outside of Mesopotamia, sometimes at a considerable distance, tells us more about the wide reach of the trade network.

The most faraway example is a tomb from the 5th to 3rd century BCE in the city of Huludao in China, where glass eye beads have been excavated that were produced in Mesopotamia in the Late Bronze Age, around 1,100 BCE. Clearly these beads have traveled quite a distance in the centuries after their creation, but also in the time of the Bronze Age itself trade routes reached far.

Glass beads excavated in Europe were found to have been produced in Mesopotamia.

Medieval jewellery and continuing traditions in Iraq

During the Middle Ages, the area that is now Iraq continued to flourish as a trade hub. Baghdad was the capital of the Islamic world for a considerable time, and it is during the Middle Ages that we see forms and styles take shape that continue to be used in jewellery. The seal pendant shown here dates from ca 600 to 1200, and inscribed stones like these are still much sought after today.

These international connections are still visible in the traditional jewellery of Iraq. The silver jewellery of the tribes inhabiting the thick marshes in the south of Iraq has its own distinct style, while in the north of Iraq, the ethnic minority known as the Assyrians still have their own jewellery styles. In the cities, Ottoman jewellery styles have found their way into the spectrum of adornment, such as the characteristic belt buckles. All in all, Iraq is home to some of the most stunning and significant pieces of human adornment and history.

Ancient jewellery of Iraq: a testimony to human achievements

The story of ancient jewellery in Iraq spans millennia, from the gold rosettes of Ur to the bead production at Tepe Gawra, and from Assyrian diadems to medieval workshops in Baghdad. Across this long history, jewellery was never just decoration: it was a marker of rank, a tool of ritual, and a product of far-reaching trade.

For us today, these pieces provide a bridge to the people of ancient Mesopotamia. They remind us that even in the earliest civilisations, jewellery was already bound up with identity, belief, and cultural meaning. Whether a necklace buried with a queen or a simple bead traded across empires, each object tells us that adornment has always been central to human life.

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References

This is an updated, adapted and expanded version of a blog I wrote earlier for the Zay Initiative.

Alarashi, H. 2016. Butterfly Beads in the Neolithic Near East: Evolution, Technology and Socio-cultural Implications, in: Cambridge Archaeological Journal 26:3, pp. 493-512

Benzel, K. 2013. Puabi’s adornment for the afterlife: materials and technology of jewelry at Ur in Mesopotamia. PhD-thesis, Columbia University

Gansell, A. R. 2007. Identity and Adornment in the Third-millennium BCE Mesopotamian ‘Royal Cemetery’ at Ur, in: Cambridge Archaeological Journal 17:1, pp. 29-46

Gansell, A.R., S.L. James & S Dillon 2012. Women in ancient Mesopotamia, in: A Companion to Women in the Ancient World, pp. 11-24

Hussein, M.M. 2016. Nimrud. The Queens’ Tombs. Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage, Baghdad/Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago Acces this publication here

Maxwell-Hysop, K.R. 1960. The Ur Jewellery. A Re-Assessment in the Light of Some Recent Discoveries, in: Iraq Vol. 22, pp. 105-15

Jenkins, M. & M. Keene 1982. Islamic Jewelry in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Miller, N. F. 2000. Plant Forms in Jewellery from the Royal Cemetery at Ur, in: Iraq Vol. 62, pp. 149-155

Peasnall, B. & M.S. Rothmann. One of Iraq’s Earliest Towns. Excavating Tepe Gawra in the archives of the University of Pennsylvania Museum, in Expedition Vol. 45 no 3, pp. 34-39 Access this publication here

Varberg, J. et al. 2016. Mesopotamian glass from Late Bronze Age Egypt, Romania, Germany and Denmark, in: Journal of Archaeological Science 74, pp. 184-194

The Bedouin Silver blog gives credit where credit is due! Transparent referencing and citing sources helps us all grow. Would you like to do the same and quote this article? Here’s how:

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The Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog: Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery, and obtained her PhD at Leiden University on jewellery, informal ritual and collections. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only. Sigrid strongly believes in accessibility of knowledge, and aims to provide reliable and trustworthy content: that’s why the Bedouin Silver blog provides references and citations.

Textiles in Motion

Textiles in Motion

by | Ancient jewellery, Reviews

Dress research

Textiles in Motion

Published on August 08, 2024

When the study of ancient personal adornment meets lived experiences, magic happens! Textiles in Motion. Dress for Dance in the Ancient World is filled with interdisciplinary study in which ancient textiles come to life, statues swirl and the past jingles.

Textiles in Motion: the outline

This book is one of the results of a much larger project focusing on Etruscan dance through textile studies. Its contents extend wider than Etruria though, and present us with articles grouped in 6 distinct parts. First, you’ll find practical perspectives on dance and clothing, followed by Movement and Design, Embodiment and Communication, Cognition and Sensory Experience, Images and Metaphors, and even Modern Reception.

The contributions take us all over the ancient world: from the Mediterranean to China, from Bronze Age Europe to dancing Egyptologists. What will you find in this book? I’m not going to cover it all (because, spoiler alert) but will take you through my favourite chapters.

Textiles in Motion: dance in action

The first contribution, Practical perspectives on dance and clothing, is one I like best in this book. It’s written in a very approachable style, and weaves current-day dance experience together with the study of ancient textiles. I mean, even the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders make an appearance! The combination of folkloric dance experience and textile study makes this one of the most relatable and enjoyable chapters in the book. I found the notion of ‘showing off’ during dance particularly valuable –  it brings a new dynamic to the study of ancient textiles.

That is followed-up immediately by the next chapter, which introduces the design and construction of woollen skirts from eastern Central Asia. These were made some 2,000 years ago, and this chapter shows how they were actually designed to move. Through a combination of scientific research and technical recreation, these skirts were seen moving again the for the first time in millennia: a great example of how creating and wearing replicas of ancient textiles may help us understand their functionality.

That same combination of research with recreations is also what makes chapter 8 fascinating. Here, we move to Iron Age Europe, so even further back in time to around 800 – 400 BCE. Elite ladies from the Hallstatt culture in this timeframe wore jewellery that jingled, and what I found really interesting in this contribution is that the sound they produce has been analysed for its wavelength: individually and together, to create an idea of the ‘soundscape’ of these ladies.

I do wonder if that sound may have been altered slightly due to the corrosion on the jewels – I can’t quite make out if this analysis has been done with original jewels, replica jewels, or both. Either way, it’s super cool research – because it also involves reenactment of ancient dance poses by dancer dressed in replica garments and jewellery.

This way, both the movement of textile and the sounds produced could be studied. From there, further research is suggested into the ‘sound fields’ that these elite ladies emitted: could you, as an Iron Age person, judge from the specific jingle of their ornaments what status they have?

Textiles in Motion: dancing statues

Another field of study is that of 3D objects, like statues. The third chapter examines beautiful terracotta and bronze statues from ancient Greece, showing women who clearly are moving – but are they dancing, and if so, how? This chapter reads almost like a detective, piecing clues about the type of textile, how it was fastened, and which movements could may made – or not.

I also really enjoyed the elaborate discussion on Roman household gods, the lares. These gods were present in nearly every household, either in the form of little statuettes or painted on the wall. The author goes over pose, dress and personal appearance in great detail, and after reading this contribution I figured myself not much of an archaeologist – because I never realised that they, clearly, dance. How cool is that, to have dancing gods in your home? The author calls them ‘the festive guardians of the prosperity of the household’ (p.66), which is at, least to me, a new angle from which to observe these very familiar gods.

Textiles in Motion: the body, the senses, and dance

Multiple chapters discuss dance, personal appearance and the senses in Ancient Egypt. To share just one of these, the contribution on tattoos in ancient Egypt explores the relation between the body and elements of dress, the art of writing in Egypt and divine service. By considering tattoos as clothing, they gain an entirely new meaning in the context of dance: while dance is a performance that is temporal, tattoos are permanent.

Textiles in Motion – an inspiring book

This is a book about so much more than ‘just’ textiles and dance: it approaches dance in Antiquity across the full range of the senses. That is what makes it an absolutely inspiring book to me. Many of the chapters are illustrated with well-chosen images, and what I also picked up while reading this volume, was a sense of fun: in several contributions, the authors really seemed to have enjoyed what they were doing. That is usually the best way to embark on any type of research!

In combining sources such as texts, images and actual remains with sensory experiences, the past becomes a vivid place. Its interdisciplinary approach and openness to new avenues of exploration adds significantly to how we may understand movement and the senses in the past – an understanding that brings the people of that past much closer.

Whether you are into the history of dance, or an archaeologist or historian (or all of them), this is a volume I highly recommend!

More about Textiles in Motion

Textiles in Motion. Dress for Dance in the Ancient World.

Edited by Audrey Gouy (2023). 208 pages, full-colour, in English. Published by Oxbow Books: see here for more info and ordering.

I received the book as review copy.

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Would you like to quote this article? Please do! Here’s how:

S. van Roode, [write the title as you see it above this post], published on the Bedouin Silver website [paste the exact link to this article], accessed on [the date you are reading this article and decided it was useful for you].

Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery, and obtained her PhD at Leiden University on the jewellery of the Egyptian zar-ritual. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only.

Ancient jewellery: Palestine

Ancient jewellery: Palestine

by | Ancient jewellery, Cultures & People

levantine jewellery history

Ancient Palestinian jewellery

Updated March 9, 2025

What is the history of traditional jewellery in North Africa and the Middle East? Historical context and cultural heritage have left their traces in the traditional jewellery worn in countries as we know them today, and so this blog series takes us back to the distant past. In this blog, I will look at jewellery history in Palestine: the region of Historic Palestine and Greater Syria, which since 1948 includes Israel.  What is the history of Palestinian jewellery in very broad strokes?

Ancient trade and historic Palestine

Historic Palestine is situated on the shores of the Mediterranean. Here, trade routes coming over land from the Arab Peninsula and Central Asia connected with those coming from Egypt. The sea routes over the Mediterranean also included Palestinian ports. As in most of the eastern Mediterranean, influences from Western Asia met directly with southern European and northern African cultures, resulting in a pluriform world.

Tell el-Ajjul, near the modern city of Gaza, was one of the principal cities in the southern Levant as it was strategically located on the main route through Sinai into Egypt, near the Mediterranean coast as well as on an intersection with trade routes coming from Syria.

Bronze Age Palestine: gold jewellery and glass beads

Tell el-Ajjul for example was a place where gold jewellery was produced in the late Bronze Age. [1] Here, three hoards were found, which reflect these international relations in their variety of styles. Some of the jewellery items are clearly Egyptian, such as rings with scarabs. Others are based on more local Canaanite traditions, such as the triangular pendant with a goddess, of which parallels have been found in Syria as well as on the Uluburun shipwreck. Several earrings and a crescent pendant are reminiscent of jewellery still worn today.

Jewellery based on Egyptian examples, such as scarabs and other Egyptian amulets is found widely in Palestine from ca 1500 BCE onwards: this is the timeframe in which the pharaohs extended their empire into the Levant.

In Bisan, also known as Beit She’an, over 1,500 glass and faience beads were excavated within a temple site. [2] While the majority of the glass and faience beads were of Egyptian production methods and style, they were strung together with beads and ornaments that referred to Canaanite gods and goddesses.

Silver jewellery hoards in historic Palestine

Besides gold jewellery and glass beads, several hoards of silver have been found throughout Palestine as well. [3] These date from the 12th century BCE to the 6th century BCE and tell us a great deal about trade and contacts. The origin of the silver itself in these hoards has been analyzed, and this showed two notable facts. [4]

First, the silver was melted down and reworked several times. This is a custom that is widespread throughout Southwest Asia and North Africa, as precious metals were valuable and reused when needed.

Second, the origins of the silver found in these hoards are Anatolia, the Aegean and, perhaps more surprising, the western Mediterranean – the Iberian Peninsula, or Sardinia. This points to a trade contact from west to east and illustrates the wide reach of trade networks in the late Bronze and early Iron Age.

Glass jewellery production in al Khalil [Hebron] and the coastal regions

Palestine was a major region of glass production during the first millennium CE.[5] Here, glass finger rings, beads, pendants and bracelets were created. Pilgrim souvenirs made of glass catered to Christian worshippers [6].

Glass jewellery continued to be created during the Middle Ages, when for example the use of glass bracelets increased exponentially. Fragments of bracelets are regularly found at excavation sites, but are not often well understood. Their method of production, just like beads, did not change significantly for a long time. This makes them difficult to date: it is the excavation stratigraphy that provides a date for the bracelet fragments. [7]

One of the locations that was famous for its glass production until the last century was al Khalil, also known as Hebron. Here, the glass industry dates back at least two millennia. Glass beads have been produced here as well, at least since the Middle Ages, and a 1799 travel account mentions the coarse glass beads that were created in Hebron and traded to East Africa. Glass bracelets made in Palestine were considered an indispensable part of a bride’s dowry in 1920s southern Palestine.⁠ [8]

This blog will continue with the traditional silver jewellery of Palestine: Bethlehem.

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References

[1] McGovern, E. 1980. Ornamental and Amuletic Jewelry Pendants of Late Bronze Age Palestine. An Archaeological Study. PhD-thesis, University of Pennsylvania

[2] McGovern, E., S.J. Stuart & C.P. Swann. The Late Bronze Egyptian Garrison at Beth Shan: Glass and Faience Production and Importation in the Late New Kingdom, in: Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 1993-05-01, Vol.290 (290/291), p.1-27

[3] Taha, H., A. Pol & G. Van der Kooij 2006. A Hoard of Silver Coins at Qabatiya, Palestine. Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Ramallah

[4] Wood, J., I. Montero-Ruiz & M. Martinón-Torres. From Iberia to the Southern Levant: the Movement of Silver Across the Mediterranean in the Early Iron Age, in: Journal of World Prehistory (2019) 32, p. 1-31

[5] Freestone, I. C. Glass Production in the First Millennium CE; A Compositional Perspective, in: Klimscha, F. et al (eds) 2021. From Artificial Stone to Translucent Mass-Product. Berlin Studies of the Ancient World, 67, p. 245-246

[6] Schwarzer, H. & T. Rehren. Glass Finds From Pergamon. A Report on the Results of Recent Archaeologic and Archaeometric Research, in: Klimscha, F. et al (eds) 2021. From Artificial Stone to Translucent Mass-Product. Berlin Studies of the Ancient World, 67, p. 181

[7] See for a short excursion into glass bracelets from Sinai for example Shindo, Y. 2001. The classification and chronology of Islamic glass bracelets from al-Tur, Sinai, in: Senri Ethnological Studies vol. 55, pp. 73-100

[8] Weir, S. 1989. Palestinian Costume. The Trustees of the British Museum, London

This is an updated, adapted and expanded version of an earlier blog post I wrote for the Zay Initiative.

The Bedouin Silver blog gives credit where credit is due! Transparent referencing and citing sources helps us all grow. Would you like to do the same and quote this article? Here’s how:

S. van Roode, [write the title as you see it above this post], published on the Bedouin Silver website [paste the exact link to this article], accessed on [the date you are reading this article and decided it was useful for you].

The Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog: Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery, and obtained her PhD at Leiden University on jewellery, informal ritual and collections. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only. Sigrid strongly believes in accessibility of knowledge, and aims to provide reliable and trustworthy content: that’s why the Bedouin Silver blog provides references and citations.

The Mineral and the Visual

The Mineral and the Visual

by | Ancient jewellery, European jewellery, Reviews

Precious Stones in Medieval Secular Culture

The Mineral and the Visual

Stones have always held meaning for people. They were believed to hold certain powers, worn as amulet or talisman, and they were even thought to cure diseases. The Mineral and the Visual explores the role of precious stones during the Middle Ages, and particularly in a non-religious context. And it is a fascinating read!

Full cover of the book The Mineral and the Visual

Bedouin Silver | Mineral full cover

The Mineral and the Visual centers around the notion that precious stones in the Middle Ages were looked upon decidedly different than we now are accustomed to. They were not merely decorative embellishments in pieces belonging to the realm of what we now regard as ‘decorative arts’, but they represented a world of art, meaning and science. They were powerful in and of themselves, and studying them was a highly valued discipline that required literacy and knowledge. Contrary to our times, where we select precious stones based on their financial value and appearance, for the medieval purpose mattered what a stone could do (p. 6). That is hardly a new concept; the agency of stones is of prime importance among for example the Bedouin [1], but here it is applied to medieval objects.

This book approaches this agency of stones through three case-studies: bejeweled crowns, illustrated texts on stones (the so-called lapidaries) and illustrated travel accounts. And in these three themes, a multifaceted, brightly coloured world emerges of living stones, knowledge about those stones, and trade and commerce in acquiring these stones. Before I take you through the book, here are a few observations. First off, the emphasis of the book is on medieval use of stones in the West, as is clearly mentioned on the back cover. Of course, there is attention for the intersection with the Islamic world, for example in the part on illustrated lapidaries where knowledge exchange is touched upon, but the geographical scope of the book is mainly Western Europe. Where sources from the Islamic world and beyond are used, this is to confirm European practices. As the trade in gemstones itself, but notably also the ideas and beliefs associated with these have always spanned continents, that half the story is left out is something to be aware of as reader. Within that European perspective, the emphasis seems to be on the German-speaking world, which narrows it down further. An example is how the German language is mentioned as recognizing ‘the gender-neutral and class-specific conmingling of human and mineal, for it links Edelmann and Edelfrau to Edelstein…’ (p. 14) – I’m no linguist, but the use of ‘edel’ with objects or notions deemed noble seems to me not limited to people and stones and not specific to the German language, either. Early medieval Anglo-Saxon names such as Aethelflaed ‘noble beauty’ and Aethelred ‘noble counsel’ employ the same form, after all. And second, be advised that this is an academic study, not a publication for a wider audience: I fear the language used may discourage non-academic readers, which is too bad, as there is so much this book offers. Having said that: onwards to the world of stones!

The first part presents the power of bejeweled medieval crowns. We expect royalty to bedazzle and shine, and that was no different for the Middle Ages: kings and queens were covered in jewellery and precious materials. But whereas nowadays that is more of an expression of status already present, in the Middle Ages the use of precious stones was what created that status in the first place. I found that a fascinating notion: the stones themselves have the power to imbue a person with royalty and its accompanying virtues. The few remaining medieval crowns are discussed and analyzed, and placed in their historic context. Here, I could not help but wonder in how far we might interpret crowns as ‘secular’ given the close, inseparable power of royalty and church in the periods under discussion, even with the definition of secular given on p. 10. The 26 early medieval votive crowns from Guarrazar, Spain, for example have been left out of this book. These are excellent examples of the continuation of Byzantine styles and its gem use, and it would be interesting to see if the theory developed by the author on the function of the Leitstein on crowns is also applicable to votive crowns.

In the second part, the author adds another layer to the reality of living, powerful stones, and that is what contemporary literature tells us about knowledge of these stones and their powers. Lapidaries are an encyclopedia of sorts, presenting knowledge about stones, and they have existed from Antiquity onwards. During the Islamic Middle Ages, many works including lapidaries from the classical world, but also from Buddhist and Hindu libraries as well as sources from further afield in Asia were translated into Arabic and improved upon. [2] It is in this context that I missed a closer examination of eastern sources in particular, as it would be intriguing to see if most lapidary knowledge was indeed based in Classical Antiquity, as the author assumes (p. 75, 83), or that there is evidence to the contrary. [3] This part traces the development of the lapidary in the Middle Ages and explores how knowledge about precious stones was interwoven with not only geology, but astrology, medicine and magic. I enjoyed the elaborate exploration into observation: not just names and colours, but also shades and hues of colours, the touch of stones and even their taste (I can’t help but wonder what stone tastes like rotten fish….!) (p. 99) The knowledge present in lapidaries is presented and discussed, and this journey into the medieval mind and the dangerous world it found itself in is fascinating – what to think of a coral table ornament hung with fossilized shark teeth set in gold, that guests could use to test their food for poison?

From what was originally learned, medical knowledge it is but a small step to magical knowledge, and that is where the knowledge contained in these scholarly books finds its way to a wider audience. An entire chapter is devoted to ancient carved gemstones such as cameos and intaglios: not only were these made of stones that had powers themselves, but they contained ancient engravings that carried meaning, too, and might be at odds with Christianity – here, lapidaries show traces of redaction, and the author walks us through the wider world behind those religious convictions and the developing of other viewpoints regarding the powers assumed to be present in stones.

The third part sees the expansion of all this knowledge into the practical realm: how to get one’s hands on these precious, and often foreign stones? Travel books share insights in how difficult it was to obtain stones mined in faraway lands – or so they would have us believe. The author elaborates on the idea that precious stones in the Middle Ages were coveted because of their powers and magical properties: travel accounts relaying knowledge seen and heard in distant lands confirmed that information on the one hand, and on the other hand emphasized the many dangers one had to face to acquire such precious stones, which in turn was reflected in their price. Here again, we see how world history is incredibly important. These jewels and precious materials could only be imported into Europe from Asia when trade routes were secure: both during the early Middle Ages and the later Middle Ages those circumstances were provided, first by the stability of the young Islamic realm and later by the Mongol conquests. Tracing merchant routes and traders’ inventories, this chapter paints a vivid picture of the gem trade in the Middle Ages.

I enjoyed this book. The way the author combines stones with ideas about those and the economics behind them over a longer period of time is innovative, and based on a richness in sources that is as dazzling as the medieval artworks discussed themselves. In doing so, she departs from general art historian books (which are often limited to one period only), and instead follows the long lines of history through several centuries. It would have made for an even more interesting read if the long geographical lines were also followed, but I do understand that would have presented a massive scope. By looking at precious stones through the eyes of the Medieval person, that person and their world comes to life. It’s a world that I would very much like to see presented in a more easily accessible book for a larger audience, too: there is so much to see and learn in this gem-studded, medieval world of wonders!

This is a fascinating read for curators and medievalists, but certainly also for gemmologists and jewellery historians interested in the agency and life of jewels and bejeweled objects.

The Mineral and the Visual. Precious Stones in Medieval Secular Culture. Brigitte Buettner, 2022

Colour/B&W, 256 pages, in English. Published by The Pennsylvania State University Press

The book was received as review copy from the publisher.

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References

[1] Popper-Giveon, A., Abu Rabia, A. & J. Ventura, From White Stone to Blue Bead: materialized beliefs and sacred beads among the Bedouin in Israel, in: Material Religion 10-2, pp. 132-135

[2] See Starr, S.F. 2013. Lost Enlightenment. Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press

[2] As for example in Content, D. 2016. Ruby, Sapphire & Spinel: An Archaeological, Textual and Cultural Study. Part I. Text. Brepols, Turnhout

Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only.

Engraved Gems

Engraved Gems

by | Ancient jewellery, European jewellery, Reviews

the guy ladriere collection

Engraved Gems

One of the most elusive forms of adornment from Antiquity are engraved gems. They existed in large numbers and many have survived to this day, but as these were eminently portable objects, they often lack context. Stones were taken out of rings and pendants to be fashioned into another jewel, and endless cycle that continues until today. By studying engraved gems carefully however, there is a lot to be learned about the world they come from. L’École, School of Jewelry Arts, exhibited a large private collection in 2022, accompanied by the book Engraved Gems. Cameos, Intaglios and Rings from the Guy Ladrière Collection.

 

Engraved Gems

Roman ring with inscription, cat. no. 306

This large and beautifully designed book starts out with an interview with the collector himself. The choices and preferences of the collector are a most important element of any collection, as they are imperative to our understanding what the collection represents. Where the major and important collection of cameos by Derek Content for example was built specifically to be representative and show the full range of quality found across the Empire [1], in the interview with Guy Ladrière we learn that his choices were based on beauty and personal preferences. That results in a different selection, and I enjoyed the passion shining through in the interview: many collectors will relate to his anecdotes of having, holding, missing out on, and wearing.

The first chapter takes us along in the world of words: what exactly is the difference between cameo and intaglio again, how were they created and from which stones? The treaty on terminology used for a variety of gemstones is particularly useful as it presents an overview of the convoluted history of these terms, and clearly states which terms will be used throughout the book. Now as terminology is notoriously complicated, I’m sure gemmology experts will have their own opinion of these choices, but specifying what is meant by ‘agate’, ‘carnelian’ etc. in the present volume does provide clarity for the understanding of the contents.

One thing that struck me as odd in this chapter is the statement, regarding garnets, that the trade routes to the East disappeared in the early Middle Ages, and so garnets were collected from Bohemia and Portugal. (p. 31). Research has shown that these trade routes did not disappear completely. Garnets in early medieval jewellery from various locations across The Netherlands have been examined in 2011. The results were fascinating: most of the garnets in these jewellery pieces came from India and Pakistan, and a single piece of jewellery could even contain garnets from several geographic locations. [2] It would be certainly interesting to examine why Portuguese and Bohemian garnets were preferred for engraved gems in this period!

Next, we dive into the collection itself. This is presented largely chronologically. Themes recur in several chapters, and where necessary, younger gems are discussed in the same chapter as older ones when it serves the theme at hand. The chapter ‘From the Phoenicians to the Sassanids: a brief history of glyptic art’ does not actually provide a brief history of glyptic art, because the earliest forms of seals like those from Mesopotamia and Egypt are not represented in the collection. What you will find here is an essay on how pre-Classical forms found their way into later pieces, such as the Egyptian scarab. This Classical-centered point of view is also present in the description of Sassanid glyptic art, of which is stated that they ‘…raised it to levels sometimes equal to the most beautiful Greek engravings’. (p. 46) Sassanid seals do obviously reflect the Hellenistic history of the region under Alexander the Great and his successors, but also draw upon older regional forms. [3] This approach tells us a little more about the collection itself: it has been compiled with loving eye for beauty, and notably Classical beauty.

Before continuing into the Classical world, the choices made by engravers in using the properties of stones, such as material and colour, are explored. Here, we see several examples of cameos created by employing the natural properties of a stone to their fullest advantage. The diachronic composition of the collection provides splendid examples of cameos from multiple timeframes, and it is interesting to see how new forms of playing with colour and structure continue to emerge through time. Intaglios as well have on occasion been selected for their colour, notably when it comes to magical gems: the present chapter mainly deals with cameos, and a later chapter in the book presents protective gems.

Graeco-Roman Egypt is represented with several beautiful cameos, of which a sardonyx piece with three superimposed portraits of Ptolemaic rulers is a remarkable piece. The discussion in this chapter highlights the pluriform culture of Graeco-Roman Egypt, where Egyptian, Greek and Roman gods merged into new deities and foreign rulers identified themselves with Egyptian gods and goddesses. Roman emperors, Alexander the Great and Medusa are presented in the next chapters in both antique and more modern gems. As classical Antiquity continued to fascinate in later centuries, these portraits were popular in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries as well. A noteworthy chapter is that on replicas, pastiches and copies: here, we learn about the blurred lines between original and reproduction. The detective work involved in tracing the original or model for a later reproduction reveals a little of the larger world behind these miniature masterpieces. Original pieces from Antiquity, but also paintings and prints served as blueprint for carved gems.

Apart from individual carved stones, the collection also holds many rings. We see a selection of these in the chapter in icons, rings and seals in the Byzantine Empire, as well as in the chapter on two thousand years of rings. Both show absolutely stunning examples of rings, which are discussed in depth in the accompanying texts. The ring theme continues with a chapter on protective gems, which were often worn set in a ring, and a chapter on the very personal nature of engraved gems. Notably rings were gifted as personal jewellery, and may contain inscriptions that wished the wearer well or spoke of love. An example in the collection is catalogue nr. 306, a Roman ring, which carries a cameo inscription (see image included above). Of this, the author writes that it is ‘not very legible here, but speaks of sweetness (dulcis, suavis)’ (p. 170). I would propose the reading ‘dulcis vita’ – a sweet life. The thing with these particular texts is that the composition pays more attention to the even display of individual letters than to how we would separate words. Add to that that the execution of the letters themselves is crude, and they do indeed become difficult to read. Here, the division of letters over the gem is 2 sets of 2 letters on each long side, and 1 letter on both short ends. The spelling, starting from the upper right corner and reading counterclockwise, would thus seem to be DU-LC-I-SV-IT-A, wishing the wearer a sweet life. [4]

The journey through time continues with gems from the Renaissance, the 17th century and Neoclassicism. Individual artists, the significance and meaning of forms and the echoes of Antiquity are all discussed and placed into context.

Each chapter in this book is well referenced and as such provides an excellent starting point for further research. The references contain not only relevant literature, but also parallels: an absolute necessity and an invitation to explore further. In that respect, I was however surprised to see the collection mentioned above, of the Content cameos, missing from the bibliography. The photography is beautiful, and I really appreciated how much space is allocated for images: rings are shown from several angles and cameos from different perspectives so as to take in as many details as possible. The structure and organization of this volume are also wonderfully clear: each image in the main chapters refers to a catalogue entry. The full collection is included in the last section of the book, where details of each piece are provided, referring back to the discussion in the main text.

This is a beautiful book that illustrates the long history of engraved gems from the Classical period and their reception, imitation and emulation in later times. It contains a massive amount of information that is well written and easy to digest: I have learned quite a few things while reading this book. As substantial private collections of engraved gems are rare, this book is a valuable addition to the shelf of any researcher and a beautiful introduction into the world of gems from past to present for the interested reader.

Engraved Gems. Cameos, Intaglios and Rings from the Guy Ladrière Collection. By Philippe Malgoures, Mare & Martin/L’Ecole, School of Jewelry Arts 2022.

304 pages, full-colour, in English. Available through the publisher

The book was received as review copy by the publisher.

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References

[1] Henig, M. and H. Molesworth 2018. The Complete Content Cameos, Brepols, Brussels, p. 7

[2] Willemsen, A. 2014. Gouden Middeleeuwen. Nederland in de Merovingische wereld, ca 400 – 700 na Chr. Walburg Pers, Zutphen, p. 150-151

[3] Gyselen, R. 1997. L’Art Sigillaire Sassanide dans les collections de Leyde, National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden, p. xviii, or see Gyselen, R. 2017. Sasanian seals: owners and reusers, in: Bercken, B.J.L. van den and V.C.P. Baan (eds), 2017. Engraved Gems. From Antiquity to the Present, Sidestone Press, Leiden pp. 85-92 for an iconographic discussion of their owners’ identification

[4] See a comparable crudely executed gem from Nijmegen, with a similar pattern of 1-2-2-1-2-2 letters that reads SI VIS VIVAM presented in Van Roode, S. 2019. Geheimen uit Gelderse Bodem. 10.000 jaar archeologische sieraden. Blikveld Uitgevers, Zandvoort, p. 50-51

Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. She considers jewellery heritage and a historic source. She has authored several books on jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, and on archaeological jewellery. Sigrid has lectured for the Society of Jewellery Historians, the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden and the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center, among many others. She curates exhibitions and teaches online courses on jewellery from North Africa & Southwest Asia.

Gold of the Great Steppe

Gold of the Great Steppe

by | Ancient jewellery, Reviews

The Saka Scythians in Kazakhstan

Gold of the Great Steppe

A glimpse into the world of the Saka Scythians through the results of very recent excavations is the topic of the exhibition Gold of the Great Steppe in the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. The accompanying publication shows the splendor of Scythian gold ornaments in great detail, combined with the challenges and possibilities of ongoing archaeological research in East Kazakhstan.

Scythian gold is world-famous: several previous exhibitions have had visitors marvel at the craft and skill of Scythian artists. This particular exhibition and publication zoom in on the Saka, one of the peoples that we know under the umbrella name of ‘Scythians’, in eastern Kazakhstan. What is remarkable about the publication is that it has been compiled while research is ongoing: some of the finds presented have been excavated as recently as 2020. The archaeological context is presented alongside the gold from which the book gets its title. Gold of the Great Steppe is not just a catchy title to draw your attention: this book is literally crammed with images of stunning gold pieces, many of which are published for the first time here. Earrings, necklaces, headdresses, horse equipment, dress ornaments, weaponry…all executed with the flowing lines, crisp granulation and masterful decoration that the Saka are famous for. But what makes this book stand out, is the presentation within the archaeological context in which they have been retrieved – it’s like following the archaeologists closely, seeing what they are seeing.

That view starts with the large burial mounds, or kurgans, that dot the steppe landscape. As in many civilizations, where people bury their dead is both highly significant as well as a territorial marker that announces the ties of a particular people to their land. After the introductory chapter on the project itself, the second chapter of the book starts out with a brief presentation of Saka culture in the Altai Mountain range (the Kazakh part of the Altai), in which a brief history is outlined along with written sources and the part archaeological research plays in reconstructing this history. On a side note, the written sources, such as Herodotus and Achaemenid texts, are presented and throughout the book cited without discussion of their cultural bias. The presentation of petroglyphs on the other hand is absolutely enriching for our understanding of the visual language of the Saka, as several of the forms in rock art return in the gold ornaments found in the kurgans. I also enjoyed that a few settlements are included, too: much of our knowledge about the Saka stems from their funerary monuments, and so learning more about their settlements further widens our view, however brief these paragraphs are. The chapter then continues with an in-depth discussion of these funerary monuments. Individual kurgans and the finds encountered are presented, along with excavation photographs, drawings and schematics. The gold artefacts shown in this chapter are not only stunning to behold, but gain in meaning because their context is given as well. At the end of the chapter, a culture emerges that combines mythologies and world views from across the continent, attached great value to horses and combined these two values in a strong visual expression.

The next chapter zooms in on a large kurgan and its contents: kurgan 4 in Eleke Sazy. Meticulous research of this burial leads to the assumption that it might be here that the early Saka culture reached its formative stage, forming the starting point for further developments of Saka culture. Due to the careful and methodical excavation, a reconstruction has been made of its occupant: a young archer, dressed in clothing embellished with gold and wearing several pieces of gold weaponry. Here again, the photography and detailed description of the finds provide the reader with a unique viewpoint, looking over the shoulder of Kazakh archaeologists as they work.

The second half of the book zooms out, from the individual finds and their historic context, to thematic subjects: funerary customs, horse-human relations and gold working. The chapter on funerary customs is absolutely fascinating from both an archaeological and ethnographic perspective. Although I personally feel that drawing a direct parallel between living cultures and archaeological finds that are substantially older is hazardous (and as if reading my mind, the author of this chapter starts out by addressing that exact point!), I have learned a great deal about traditional funerary customs, that do provide food for thought on how we might understand the physical remnants encountered in archaeological research. The chapter on horse-human relations examines how horses were buried in the kurgans: not only where and with what equipment, but also which type of horse. Horses, like humans, have been buried with elaborate trappings and with great care. Interestingly, their ears in some cases have been clipped to mimick the undulating forms of mythological animals in Scythian gold ornaments – another benefit of the excellent conservation circumstances of the Kazakh steppe is that organic material is well preserved. How the gold ornaments, that inspired this exhibition, were made, is the central theme of the last chapter. Here, we see traditional methods of observation combined with chemical analyses, identifying where the gold came from and how it was worked into the fabulous adornments illustrated throughout the book.

As this book presents ongoing research, it does come with a few challenges. The finds themselves for example are so recent that a contextual analysis, placing the Saka within the wider Scythian cultural realm, has not yet been made – the Saka are presented within Kazakhstan only. There is a slight imbalance between the descriptive nature of the text and the interpretations given, likely because the authors are specialists in their fields and connect proverbial dots based on their extensive knowledge. For the reader however, it is sometimes not as clear cut on what grounds conclusions pertaining to mythological or ritualistic assumptions have been drawn.

A very strong point of the book is in its illustrations. For starters, the photographs of the gold ornaments are many and beautiful, allowing the reader to admire them in detail. Sweeping views of the landscape help build an understanding of the natural environment of the Saka, while excavation photographs present finds in their original context, and in doing so convey the amount of work needed in conservation and restoration of individual finds. Maps and schematics aid our understanding of what we are looking at, while reconstruction drawings bring the picture of the past full circle.

All in all, this is not just an art historian book about gold jewellery. This book showcases the possibility encapsulated in ornaments to function as historic sources, if they are studied in and together with their original context.  A single ornament, looted and deprived of its context, loses its voice as carrier of information about the past, and the authors of this book have gone through great lengths to illustrate what information can be derived from ornaments. The archaeologists in Kazakhstan battle looting, time constraints and global warming in their everyday work, while also painstakingly studying material culture to increase our insights into the culture of the Saka steppe nomads. Gold of the Great Steppe book offers a wonderful view into Saka culture, the rich heritage of Kazakhstan, and the hard work of its archaeologists.

Gold of the Great Steppe, by Rebecca Roberts (ed). Paul Holberton Publishing, 2021.

170 pp, full-colour, in English. Available with the publisher and online.

Available with the publisher and online.

The book was gifted as review copy by the publisher.

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Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. She considers jewellery heritage and a historic source. She has authored several books on jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, and on archaeological jewellery. Sigrid has lectured for the Society of Jewellery Historians, the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden and the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center, among many others. She curates exhibitions and teaches online courses on jewellery from North Africa & Southwest Asia.