Achaemenid

Achaemenid Gold Cloisonné Pectoral, 6th-4th century B.C.E. Gold and cloisonné, H. 26 cm.; W. 24 cm. © Miho Museum This pectoral is the most splendid example of Achaemenid court jewelry presently known. It comprises three different parts: a collar-like front section that is flat; a long, clasp-like, tubular element that attaches at duck's-head terminals; and a pendant hinged to the front. According to ancient sources, the Achaemenid "Kings of Kings" sometimes honored their followers with jewelry. These gifts befitted not only the... [Lire la suite]

Pair of Achaemenid Gold Bracelets with Winged-caprid Termini with Cloisonne Inlay, mid-6th-4th century B.C.E. Gold with lapis lazuli and carnelian inlay, W. 11.1 cm. each © Miho Museum These two magnificent bracelets are said to have originally belonged with the torque (cat. no. 38) and should likewise be attributed to the late Achaemenid period.1 An association of these pieces is corroborated by stylistic and technical similarities.  The bracelets are composed of separately made gold elements, such as the caprid terminals,... [Lire la suite]

Achaemenid Gold Bracelet with Inlaid Termini in the Form of Seated Ducks, mid-6th-4th century B.C.E. Gold with lapis lazuli, turquoise, onyx, and rock crystal inlay, mid-6th-4th century B.C.E., W. 10.5 cm. © Miho Museum The jeweler of this bracelet chose ducks as terminal figures and combined them with a rather heavy looking circlet that can be opened. The ducks were fashioned separately, and all the feathers and the eyes were originally characterized by inlays. The ducks' bills are not preserved. The birds are fixed to a single... [Lire la suite]

Achaemenid Gold Bracelet with Inlaid Termini in the Form of Duck's Heads, mid-6th-4th century B.C.E. Gold with lapis lazuli, agate, and carnelian inlay, W. 8 cm. © Miho Museum The massive bracelet is more or less a smaller, simplified version of catalogue number 40. The ducks are reduced to protomes with their heads turned back in a typical Achaemenid fashion.1 The bracelet is constructed of hollow gold tubing, and the duck protomes were formerly elaborately inlayed with colored stones. One duck bill is made of agate, the other of... [Lire la suite]

Achaemenid Silver Rhyton with Horned Lion Protome, 5th-4th century B.C.E. Silver with vitreous paste inlay, H. 17.5 cm. © Miho Museum The rhyton with an animal protome-a horn for liquids to which the depiction of the forepart of an animal was attached, at a right angle-was a vessel form that came more widely into use in the Near East during the Achaemenid period (about 538-331 B.C.). The protome of this rhyton depicts the forequarters of a fantastic hybrid creature, a leonine beast with curved blunt horns and upright ears, probably... [Lire la suite]

Achaemenid Fragmentary Silver Rhyton with a Horse Protome, 5th-early 4th century B.C.E. Silver, H. 27 cm. © Miho Museum This rhyton originally was made in two basic parts: the horizontally ribbed horn-now missing a section in the middle-with its plain, slightly flaring rim, and the terminal in the form of a horse protome with arched neck and with forelegs tightly folded under. The mane is dressed with a roached (clipped) central crest flanked by a short fringe along either side, and the forelock is tied upright, trimmed in a stiff... [Lire la suite]

Achaemenid Gilded Silver Rhyton with a Stag Protome, 5th-4th century B.C.E. Silver with gold foil inlay, H. 31 cm. © Miho Museum The tip of this rhyton is shaped like a stag with extended forelegs. The stag's horns are shaped like spread hands, and the body is decorated with spots, indicating that it is a Dama dama deer. The separately formed cup is decorated with hammered designs depicting the stag's extended hind legs and hindquarters, and the artist used the curving shape of the cup to give a feeling of leaping motion to the... [Lire la suite]

Achaemenid Gold Censer, 5th-4th century B.C.E. Gold, H. 9.8 cm. © Miho Museum This high-footed cup form is thought to originally have been a censer. The foot with its rounded bottom is incised from the center of the base with a radiating pattern of thin lines which rise up the sides of the foot. This may have been designed to represent the rising smoke of the incense. The upper body of this censer is covered with a grooved pattern of long flower petals, and there is a rounded protruding band between vessel... [Lire la suite]

Achaemenid Gold Bowl with Everted Lip. Gold, 6th-5th century B.C.E., D. 10.5 cm. © Miho Museum. The protruding base of this bowl is fitted with a mouth rim that rises relatively vertically before flaring at its top. The exterior base of the bowl is decorated with a rounded tip 10 petal, double-layer rosette. The body of the bowl is covered with 16 narrow framed arches, each fitted with a protruding male head in the top of the arch. The clothing and hair of these males have been gilded. A vessel with three-dimensional figural heads... [Lire la suite]

Achaemenid Gold Bowl with Lid. Gold, 6th-5th century B.C.E. D. 10 cm. © Miho Museum. This bowl has a flat base and its cylindrical form is slightly puckered at the top. The bowl has a lid with a central, hammered, disk-shaped protruding handle.