GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Except for the colored inlays in rings and the occasional use of colored glass, Etruscan jewelry is typically monochrome. One of the few exceptions is this dress ornament and its lunate setting above the charioteer which probably held a colored inlay. The filigree ornaments on the upper extension might have been used as cloisons for enamel. More a miniature relief object than a personal ornament, this piece is unique in shape and style, but the workmanship of the figural representation clearly identifies it as Etruscan.
This elaborate construction of sheet gold has a rectangular panel featuring a repoussé relief of a winged man in a chariot with five horses against a stipled background. He wears a toga and a "halo" and holds a kentron in his raised right hand. The horses are rendered in full relief, each made of two stamped halves. The area above is covered with ornamental bands arching around a central panel, which is filled with the elongated leaves of a tall palmette. The designs in the arched registers are separated by plain filigree lines. All are executed in remarkably fine filigree.
Although no parallel for it is known, this pendant fits perfectly well into the stylistic and technical picture of Etruscan jewelry and art of the later 5th and particularly the 4th centuries BCE.
Adapted from
Barbara Deppert-Lippitz, Ancient Gold Jewelry at the Dallas Museum of Art (Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art in association with the University of Washington Press, 1996), 38; 130.
NOTES
READ
cut: Closest to the palmette are S-shaped volutes with tiny granules in the center of each spiral. Next is a zone of heart-shaped leaves, followed by two rows of elliptical leaves which, combined with their dividing line, form a stylized branch. The beaded edge of the arched extension is formed by two rows of granules of slightly different sizes. The two outer edges of the rectangular field are decorated with evenly spaced hollow globules with additional granulation. An empty lunate box setting, flanked by large granules and cup-shaped rosettes, is placed at the base of the palmette like a calyx. The lower area of the rectangular field, below the horse protomes, features a row of filigree tongues above a row of filigree ornaments consisting of two leaves flanking a circle. A filigree wave pattern on the lower edge is punctured by holes for short loop-in-loop chains, to which gold pendant beads are attached. On the back of the pendant is an opening and the fragment of a hollow hook surrounded by granulation.
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PROVENANCE
Until 1991: probably Collection of Dr. Athos Moretti, Switzerland (presented by Robert Haber, New York) [1]
From 1991: Dallas Museum of Art, The Eugene and Margaret McDermott Art Fund, Inc.
[1] based on existing provenance entry in TMS
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FUN FACTS
- Jewelry was far more than merely ornament to the Etruscans; it was often close to being a magic charm or amulet and implied the protection of the gods.
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General Description
Except for the colored inlays in rings and the occasional use of colored glass, Etruscan jewelry is typically monochrome. One of the few exceptions is this dress ornament and its lunate setting above the charioteer which probably held a colored inlay. The filigree ornaments on the upper extension might have been used as cloisons for enamel. More a miniature relief object than a personal ornament, this piece is unique in shape and style, but the workmanship of the figural representation clearly identifies it as Etruscan.
This elaborate construction of sheet gold has a rectangular panel featuring a repoussé relief of a winged man in a chariot with five horses against a stipled background. He wears a toga and a "halo" and holds a kentron in his raised right hand. The horses are rendered in full relief, each made of two stamped halves. The area above is covered with ornamental bands arching around a central panel, which is filled with the elongated leaves of a tall palmette. The designs in the arched registers are separated by plain filigree lines. All are executed in remarkably fine filigree.
Although no parallel for it is known, this pendant fits perfectly well into the stylistic and technical picture of Etruscan jewelry and art of the later 5th and particularly the 4th centuries BCE.
Adapted from
Barbara Deppert-Lippitz, Ancient Gold Jewelry at the Dallas Museum of Art (Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art in association with the University of Washington Press, 1996), 38; 130.
Fun Facts
- Jewelry was far more than merely ornament to the Etruscans; it was often close to being a magic charm or amulet and implied the protection of the gods.
Archival Resources
Web Resources
Notes
READ
cut: Closest to the palmette are S-shaped volutes with tiny granules in the center of each spiral. Next is a zone of heart-shaped leaves, followed by two rows of elliptical leaves which, combined with their dividing line, form a stylized branch. The beaded edge of the arched extension is formed by two rows of granules of slightly different sizes. The two outer edges of the rectangular field are decorated with evenly spaced hollow globules with additional granulation. An empty lunate box setting, flanked by large granules and cup-shaped rosettes, is placed at the base of the palmette like a calyx. The lower area of the rectangular field, below the horse protomes, features a row of filigree tongues above a row of filigree ornaments consisting of two leaves flanking a circle. A filigree wave pattern on the lower edge is punctured by holes for short loop-in-loop chains, to which gold pendant beads are attached. On the back of the pendant is an opening and the fragment of a hollow hook surrounded by granulation.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Cultures
Geography
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
Until 1991: probably Collection of Dr. Athos Moretti, Switzerland (presented by Robert Haber, New York) [1]
From 1991: Dallas Museum of Art, The Eugene and Margaret McDermott Art Fund, Inc.
[1] based on existing provenance entry in TMS
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