Antique Jewelry

Ancient Jewelry from the Near East The art of jewelry making—beyond the primitive use of items such as beads and shells—has its roots in ancient Mesopotamia some 4,000 years ago. Jewelry in ancient Mesopotamia was made to adorn the human body as well as statues of the gods. Although jewels were usually made from thin gold leaf, a variety of sophisticated metalworking techniques–such as cloisonné, engraving, granulation and filigree–were also used. Queen Puabi's jewelry A selection of Queen Puabi’s jewelry. Jewelry was frequently set with large numbers of colored stones including agate, jasper, lapis lazuli, and carnelian. Typical motifs included cones and spirals, leaves and grapes. In a 20th century discovery heralded as the greatest find since the Tomb of King Tutankhamen, hundreds of burial sites were excavated near the ancient mouth of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. headdress of queen puabi Queen Puabi’s headdress, which was worn over a ceremonial wig, was made of gold, lapis lazuli, and carnelian. A small group of the burial sites, dating from the 3rd millennium B.C. and containing valuable artifacts, are now known as the Royal Tombs of Ur. Among these, the tomb of the Sumerian Queen Puabi (or Shubad) created the greatest excitement. Not only was her body covered with a robe made of gold, silver, lapis lazuli, carnelian, agate, and chalcedony, but she also wore a headdress, earrings, bracelets, and many rings made of gold. assyrian gold bracelets Bracelets excavated at the Nimrud tombs. Sumerian men as well as women were fond of jewelry. They wore bracelets, earrings, gold pectoral ornaments, rings, and necklaces. The Sumerian’s jewelry making techniques and design repertoire were inherited by the Babylonians and Assyrians, as well as the Scythians to the north, and the Hittites to the west. assyrian gold diadem A mesh diadem from the Nimrud tombs made with gold, agate, and lapis lazuli. During the 7th century B.C. the Assyrians created the first truly multicultural empire, which spanned from Egypt to the Persian Gulf and north into Turkey. The Assyrians built the first library, planned large cities, and developed aqueducts and paved roads–laying the foundations for the Persian, Greek, Roman, and Parthian empires to follow. In addition to these accomplishments, Assyrian jewelry was quite advanced. The men and women of ancient Assyria wore significant amounts of jewelry, including amulets, ankle bracelets, heavy multi-strand necklaces, and cylinder seals. winged bull Shedu A bas-relief of a winged bull, also known as a shedu, c. 713–716 B.C. This man-bull was thought to help man fight evil and chaos. Excavations at the ancient city of Nimrud have yielded the remains of royal tombs containing a rich horde of artifacts. The tombs, which date from the 8th century B.C., contained more than 50 pounds of gold and semiprecious stones. A sealed sarcophagus found in one of the tombs contained the body of a woman wearing a collection of exquisite jewelry. Another sarcophagus contained the remains of two queen consorts buried together, both wrapped in embroidered linen and covered with jewels–including a crown, a mesh diadem, 79 earrings, 30 rings, 14 armlets, 4 anklets, 15 vessels, and many chains.