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Bracelet with a basket flanked by snakes
Greek or Roman
Late Hellenistic or Early Imperial Period
1st century B.C.–1st century A.D.
Place of Manufacture: possibly Egypt
Medium/Technique
Gold, emeralds, and pearls (modern)
Dimensions
Height x diameter: 6.4 x 6.2 cm (2 1/2 x 2 7/16 in.)
Credit Line
Classical Department Exchange Fund
Accession Number1981.288
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsJewelry, Ancient Greece and Rome
ClassificationsJewelry / Adornment – Bracelets and armlets
DescriptionA gold bracelet composed of a gold band studded with two outer rows of pearls. The projecting central element, a basket (kalathos), is decorated with cabochon emeralds and flanked by coiling snakes. Snakes were regarded as protective spirits, associated with healing (Asklepios) by the Greeks and the Romans. In an Egyptian context, the snake was often associated with Agathodaimon ("the Good Spirit"). One of a pair with 1981.287.
ProvenanceBy 1980: with Holger Termer, Friedensweg 22, 2000 Hamburg 52, Germany (as ex Kunst der Antike: Ausstellung, Nov. 19-Dec. 19, 1980, Hamburg, no. 94); September 16, 1981: purchased by MFA from Holger Termer