Ancient jewelry

Ancient or antique jewelry are valuable tokens from the past.  Here at Sadigh Gallery, we have the ancient bronze, silver or gold jewelry that are kept as they were hundreds of years ago. We also carry some small antiquities (such as various kinds of beads, stones, pendants and amulets) redesigned on a modern necklace, bracelet, or earrings settings.

Here are some information on ancient artifacts that we showcase in our gallery:

Lapis lazuli jewelry in Egyptian History

The Egyptians considered that ‘its appearance imitated that of the heavens’ and considered it to be superior to all materials other than gold and silver.  They used it extensively in jewelry until the Late Period (747-332 BC) when it was particularly popular for amulets.  It was frequently described as “true” KHESBED to distinguish it from imitations made in faience or glass.  Its primary use was as inlay in jewelry and carved beads for necklaces.  Unlike most other stones used in Egyptian jewelry, it does not occur naturally in the deserts of Egypt but had to be imported either directly from Badakhshan (North Afghanistan) or indirectly as tribute or trade goods from the Near East.  Despite its exotic origin, it was already in use as early as the Predynastic Period, showing that far-reaching exchange networks between North Africa and Western Asia must have already existed in the fourth millennium BC.  It is represented in temple scenes at MEDINAT HABU and at KARNAK.

Jewelry in Ancient Greek

Jewelry in Greece was hardly worn and was mostly used for public appearances or on special occasions. It was frequently given as a gift and was predominantly worn by women to show their wealth, social status and beauty. The jewelry was often supposed to give the wearer protection from the “Evil Eye” or endowed the owner with supernatural powers, while others had a religious symbolism. Older pieces of jewelry that have been found were dedicated to the Gods.During the Bronze Age, Greeks began working with metal to make jewelry. Jewelry also started to become evidence of wealth and social status.  The bracelets were mainly used in both hands over the elbow or around the wrist as today. Their appearance is simple at first, made from wire or more solid materials which formed a spiral, multi-spiraled or open with decorated or non-decorated edges.

History of Roman Gold Jewelry

In ancient Rome, jewelry was used to an extent never seen before and not to be seen again until the Renaissance. Imperial Rome became a center for goldsmiths' workshops. Together with the precious stones and metals that were brought to the city came lapidaries and goldsmiths from Greece and the Oriental provinces. The gold ring, which under the republic had been a sign of distinction worn by ambassadors, noblemen, and senators, gradually began to appear on the fingers of persons of lower social rank until it became common even among soldiers. The great patrician families in Rome and the provinces possessed not only jewels but also magnificent gold and silver household furnishings, as shown by the objects found in Pompeii and nearby Boscoreale (Louvre).

From the standpoint of style, Roman jewelry in its earlier phases derived from both Hellenistic and Etruscan jewelry. Later it acquired distinctive features of its own, introducing new decorative themes and attaching greater importance to sheer volume (such as massive rings), in keeping with the rather pompous rhetorical spirit displayed at that point in cultural history. The motif of a serpent coiled in a double spiral, copied from Hellenistic models, was frequently used for bracelets, rings, armbands, and earrings. The Romans also used Greek geometric and botanical motifs, palmettos, fleeting dogs, acanthus leaves, spirals, ovoli, and bead sequences. From Etruscan gold jewelry the Romans took the strong plasticity of the bulla, which they transferred to necklace pendants sparely decorated with filigree or combined in completely smooth hemispheres in bracelets, headdresses, and earrings.

Sadigh Gallery is your link to the past. Our gallery has been in business for over 30 years in New York City, focusing to provide authentic ancient artifacts, coins, collectibles, and antiquities at wholesale prices. Our mission is to make ancient artifacts and history more accessible to modern people, and help them full fill their dreams to start their antiquity collection.    See, feel, and own a piece of ancient cultures like Egypt, Africa, Rome, or Greece.  Feel free to visit www.sadighgallery.com  to begin the journey.