Bracelet (one of a pair)
Unknown Artist
ca. 400
Medium
Gold
Dimensions
2 11/16 × 2 5/16 × 1 13/16 in. (6.8 × 5.9 × 4.6 cm) Other (strap): 6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm) Other (weight): 0.4 lb. (0.2 kg)
Classification
Metalwork-Gold
Culture
Byzantine
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number
17.190.1668
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite gold bracelet, one of a pair from around 400 AD, hails from the Byzantine world, a culture renowned for its opulent metalwork and enduring fusion of Roman grandeur with emerging Christian symbolism. Crafted solid gold—weighing a substantial 0.4 lb (0.2 kg)—it exemplifies the luxury reserved for the elite in the early Byzantine Empire, during the reign of emperors like Theodosius II. Measuring a compact 2 11/16 × 2 5/16 × 1 13/16 in. (6.8 × 5.9 × 4.6 cm), with a separate strap, it would have adorned the wrist with shimmering elegance, its surface likely adorned with doves, evokin...