When it came to jewelry, the Byzantine Empire had the richest traditions of any empire.
The Byzantines inherited the great lands of Greece, Egypt, the entire Near East, portions of Russian Asia, the littoral of North Africa, and the skills that accompanied them after Emperor Constantine relocated the capital to Constantinople in 330, making them the ultimate heirs to the lands and peoples of the Eastern Roman Empire.
The empire’s major cities – Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Athens – could draw inspiration from the vast wealth of Asia, Africa, and Europe, as well as from the regions themselves for skilled artisans, wrote American historian Richard H. Randall Jr. in the book Jewelry: Ancient to Modern.
The Byzantine Arts
Naturally, the Byzantine Empire did not have a single stylistic tradition, but rather a struggle between an abstract legacy that eventually originated in Persia and the East through trade routes and the classical realistic heritage that was created during Greece’s dominance of the Mediterranean.
The Byzantine arts were never entirely dominated by either approach; instead, they coexisted together in a variety of new forms.
Byzantine Head Ornament, Acquired by Henry Walters, Walters Art Museum, via Wikimedia Commons
Both traditions can be seen in the Empire’s jewelry. For example, cameos and coins are still mostly in the Hellenistic style, while a gold belt buckle and a pierced plaque to be sewn onto a court gown are entirely from the patterned and abstract Eastern tradition.
The art of cloisonné enameling, which featured hieratic figures in vivid colors floating against a gold background, was one of the new artistic developments in Constantinople. It was reminiscent of the magnificent art of mosaic, which reached its pinnacle in the decoration of Byzantine palaces and churches.
The Empress
Randall Jr. claims that San Vitale in Ravenna, with its renowned mosaics completed in 547 that depict a procession headed by Emperor Justinian and his Empress Theodora, is one of the significant monuments for the study of the imperial use of jewels.
Empress Theodora, Mosaic from Basilica of San Vitalehttps://www.medievalwomen.org/st-theodora-byzantine-empress.html, Author Petar Milošević, via Wikimedia Commos
The empress is adorned with a sumptuous garment made of gold threads and decorated with pearls and other jewels. She has a crown of gold, enamel, and stones on her head, several necklaces made of pearls, enamel, and gems around her neck, and long pearl drops in her earrings. Justinian is wearing the emperor’s distinctive insignia, a diadem and a huge brooch with triple pendants.
This jewel-encrusted magnificence was incorporated into the Byzantine court’s rituals, and courtiers in all of the empire’s cities and dependencies dutifully copied it.
Imperial Ornaments
According to Randall Jr., many imperial ornaments have survived, including the dress ornament in the current exhibit, a gold disk decorated in cloisonné enamel with a cross and two orbs representing the Eastern and Western Empires.
An enameled brooch for a lesser king that mimics the triple-pendant brooch of the Byzantine emperor can be found among the Langobard jewelry.
A pendant from a court crown is composed of sheet gold and stones that are imprinted with a cosmic sign. The cabochon stones are set against abstract grounds of perforated gold in a diadem of regal quality.
Important state officials received rings of exceptional craftsmanship and weight from the emperor as official badges of honor. One example is a large piece of gold with an intaglio depicting the figure of Victory and three-dimensional leopards supporting the bezel.
It is believed to have been a gift for one of the many successful generals who fought the protracted Byzantine defensive wars to protect their empire.
According to Randall Jr., cloisonné enamel was frequently employed in Byzantine jewelry for saints’ pendants or small holy medallions on earrings, where gold filigree served as the primary adornment.
Byzantine Pectoral Cross, Exhibit in the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio, USA, Author Daderot, via Wikimedia Commons
Although the Alexandrians appeared to have preferred long drops of many pearls, sickle-shaped filigree earrings with protruding triangles of filigree and pearls became common jewelry for ladies of the empire.
Byzantine Earrings, Walters Art Museum, Via Wikimedia Commons
Numerous colored stones were used in necklaces, alternating with pierced golden disks and clasps, to create the appearance of color and glitter. The necklace made of repoussé gold ducks and pearls, which dates back to fifth-century Coptic Egypt, is a rare instance of humor.
One of the rings is a beautifully simple gold marriage ring with symbolic joined hands. A late signet ring with religious inscriptions and etched heraldic lions is set with a classical gem that depicts the figure of Pan.
Also, Randall Jr. claims that the most remarkable is a gold ring adorned with eight scenes from Christ’s life on a tiny but readable scale in niello. It is related to several others that are regarded as marriage rings, the most well-known of which is housed at the British Museum.
A Wide Range of Civilizations
Within its vast yet diverse borders, the Byzantine Empire supported a wide range of civilizations and creative forms in addition to its governmental dominance over the eastern Mediterranean.
Bracelets with silver reliefs have a strong tendency toward the animal style in the Balkans. While the one displayed here depicts a parade of mythological creatures in plain relief, others mix repoussé and niello embellishment.
The same technique can be seen in an earring with two entangled birds, just like the one found in Hungary.
According to Randall Jr., other areas, such as southern Russia, mimic the exquisite method of Byzantine cloisonné enameling, in which the earrings are made of gold and adorned with inset pairs of birds in enamel. The earrings are similar in shape and form to the silver ones from the Balkans.
Seidengang Byzantine Diamond Gold Earrings, Source: dsfantiquejewelry.com
In many parts of the empire, notably Greece, the Balkans, southern Russia, and remote monasteries like Mount Sinai, the influence of Byzantine architecture persisted even after Constantinople fell in 1253.
The reliquary pendant of Metropolitan Arsenius of Serres, which was most likely made on the island of Chalke in the sixteenth century, is one of the richest examples of Byzantine art.
Reliquary Pendant with Virgin and Child, Acquired by Henry Walters, Walters Art Museum, via Wikimedia commons
Elegant niello ornamentation and opulent inscriptions adorn the exterior and interior of the reliquary. Four relics and a tiny, exquisitely crafted gold-and-niello reliquary cross with a pearl design, which is somewhat earlier in age, are housed inside.
The Great Eastern Empire
Also, according to Randall Jr., the pendant’s front is set with cabochon gems on a filigree background, with a sapphire cameo of the Virgin and Child serving as the focal point. This pendant’s multicultural heritage blends Greek goldsmithing, pagan gem settings, Eastern Christian imagery, and the newest European niello design.
It demonstrates the polyglot customs of the great Eastern Empire, which persisted long after its fall, just like many other examples.
From the time of Charlemagne onward, the Crusaders and, on occasion, other means, such as trade and intermarriage, brought the Byzantine tradition westward into Europe.
Chanel Maison Gripoix Byzantine Style Cuff Bracelet, Source: dsfantiquejewelry.com
For instance, in 972, Princess Theophano, the daughter of Byzantine Emperor Romanus II, wed German Emperor Otto II and brought exquisite Byzantine masterpieces as her dowry.
Theophano may have given the Walters the ivory triptych from the church in Altötting. According to Randall Jr., the styles of Carolingian France, Ottonian Germany, and the Italian Peninsula were influenced by the textiles and other goods that were acquired through commerce.
Although there aren’t many actual artifacts from this trade, the royal French collection, which is currently housed in the Cabinet des Médailles in Paris, and the treasures of San Marco in Venice both contain vessels of imperial quality.
Two comparable vessels can be found in America: the agate Rubens Vase in the Walters Art Gallery, which is adorned with satyrs and vine leaves in the late Roman style, and the serpentine bowl of Suger’s chalice for Saint-Denis in the National Gallery of Art.
Rubens Vase, Walters Art Museum, via Wikimedia Commons
Randall Jr. claims that there is insufficient evidence regarding jewelry because the goldsmith’s work was taken to the crucible and gems and enamels tended to be reset.
We invite you to visit our website, where you will find a range of Byzantine jewelry that is sure to delight your eyes and pique your interest.
Cover Photo: Fibula with an Enamel Bust, Walters Art Museum, Via Wikimedia Commons
