Roman
A pair of Roman gold and amber glass bird earrings, circa 2nd - 4th century AD
Glass, gold
Maximum drop of earrings: 2.2 cm
Length of birds: 1.3cm
Length of birds: 1.3cm
The earrings are composed of small gold wire hoops, one with an iridescent glass bead remaining, from which a larger gold hoops hangs with an additional loop and twisted wire...
The earrings are composed of small gold wire hoops, one with an iridescent glass bead remaining, from which a larger gold hoops hangs with an additional loop and twisted wire clasp. An amber glass bird pendant hangs from each large hoop. The birds have tooled beaks and tails and sit on small pad bases. The glass birds have some pitting, the tail on one is chipped off, and the small bead has a weathered iridescent surface. Modern hooks.
Condition
Minor surface wear to the birds including pitting, scratching and one tail is chipped.
Condition
Minor surface wear to the birds including pitting, scratching and one tail is chipped.
Provenance
German private collection Dreisamtal, acquired circa 1962Literature
There is a related earring with a tooled glass pendant, originally from Cyprus and now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, see acc. no. 74.51.4026; also 74.51.4024 for an example with a glass dolphin1
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