An 18 Carat Gold and Micro Mosaic Neo Etruscan Bulla Pendant

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An 18 Carat Gold and Micro Mosaic Neo Etruscan Bulla Pendant

About the Item

An 18-carat matted gold bulla pendant with two ornate sides. A bulla is a typical Estrucan lentil-shaped ornament that was often worn as a pendant. The Etruscans made jewels in Italy from the 3rd to the 7th century, their style was characterized by extremely fine granulations and filigree. This process was difficult and consisted of attaching tiny balls of solid gold to a gold surface without soldering, but rather through a chemical reaction between the gold and heated copper or malachite. This process gives malachite its Greek name, In Greek, malachite is called chrysocolla; a glue of gold. The same technique was used with gold threads or filigree. After the discovery of the archeological sites at Herculaneum and Pompeii in the 18th century, the second archeological revival was inspired by finds in Etruscan burial sites which were extensively studied by Castellani and subsequently had a big revival in the 1870s. This bulla is an incredibly fine example. The bulla opens with a wide hinge at the top and can be clipped over a chain. It has a locket compartment inside. It would have been a souvenir or a so-called “Grand Tour” jewel. Tourists on the Grand Tour (that “edifying” 2-to-3 year jaunt around Europe that nearly all well-to-do young men (and some women!) took) could purchase antique cameos, intaglios, micro mosaics, and neo-Etruscan jewels. One side of the pendant is inlaid with fine blue and white micro mosaic, in the top are snowdrops or lilly-of-the-Valley, and below in a circle is the Christogram, Chi-Rho, the first two letters of the Greek word ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ pictured superimposed so that the vertical stroke of the rho intersects the center of the chi all with a geometrical border of red and white, blue and white and gold colored tesserae and small flowers made with granulation. The other side features the intricate neo-Etruscan décor made out of fine gold wire work, granulations, and filigree, with a large flower at the heart of the pendant, Italy, circa 1870. weight: 29.30 grams dimensions: 4.8 x 3.4 cm.

Metal:
Gold,18k Gold
Weight:
29.4 g
Style:
Neoclassical
Place of Origin:
Italy
Period:
1870-1879
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1870
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
Amsterdam, NL
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU12319793852