[La Contessa]

Oh gosh - I see those little faces - Roman or Greek or Neoclassic - arrrghhhh....

[CortezPearls]

Top portion of the earrings has the typical "flat greek face" that was commonly used in Hellenistic jewelry in the 6th-3rd century b.C. But their cultural influence was alsowidespread, so it could also be of Persian origin or even Roman. Scythian perhaps?

It makes you wonder...who wore these items? What happened to them? It sure makes your imagination race. I love this thread.

[nlerner]

The Hellenistic period of European history was the period between the death of Alexander the Great (Alexander III of Macedon) in 323 BC and the annexation of the classical Greek heartlands by Rome in 146 BC.

[CLICLASP]

Wow

We have experts overthere !!
Congratulations, the winner is Nlerner : Greek, 2nd century B.C.
You are right Douglas :
cultural influence was alsowidespread, so it could also be of Persian origin or even Roman...

So it is made of gold, natural pearls and glass beads,
you know when they miss stones they replaced it easily with glass since the Egyptian period.

Here is what Caitlin teaches us

Pearl History of Greece

The ancient Greeks and Persians were intimately involved in pearls from about 2,500 years ago. Persia was a major source of pearls for Greece. Homer describes Juno's pearl earrings: "In three bright drops, her glittering gems suspended from her ears". A beautiful Greek necklace of pearls and gold, which dates from about 2,300 years ago, was displayed at the Metropolitan Museum of New York 100 years ago. It is one of the oldest known pieces in the world, and may still be owned by the museum. Though it has lost much of its luster, it is still a stunning piece.

Greek Egypt, as ruled by the Ptolemys and Cleopatra, was famous for conspicuous consumption of pearls, literally as well as figuratively. Conspicuous consumption has probably never reached the heights to which Cleopatra took it before or since when she made a meal of a fabulous pearl on a bet with Marc Anthony.

[CLICLASP]

The previous earrings came from the Campana collection
Here are some more worthseeing earrings from same collection but more recent...still hold the luster.

Beautiful and very creative, aren't they?

So today the game is not "how old" but

Does anyone know about the Campana collection overhere ?

[CortezPearls]

Etruscan! Roman! Greek!
Notice some colored glass, probably amber (with nice dark color) and the green stones...jadeite?
These seem more used in "everyday life" of a Patrician or wealthy merchant. Where did you find these???

[La Contessa]

I know you made this one easy for me

So - I copied the Introduction. BUT - OOHOHHOH - the jewelry pieces are spectacular and worthy of a look.

"The Campana jewelry collection, which was acquired by France in 1861, consists for the most part of Etruscan, Greek, and Roman pieces, together with a number of pastiches assembled from ancient and modern elements that played a major role in the history of jewelry styles and techniques in the 19th century.

In its time, the collection assembled by the marchese Giovanni Pietro Campana, which was made up of very diverse pieces from both antiquity and the 19th century, was thought to be one of the biggest and most varied in Europe. When it was put on sale, it was coveted by the leading European museums, but it was France that acquired the biggest portion in 1861.
When it was put up for sale, pieces that formed one of the original cores of this collection were given to the Castellani workshop for restoration (1858–59). They enabled this famous family of Roman goldsmiths to study ancient techniques, providing them with models and sources of inspiration for their own creations.
Exhibited at the Palais de l’Industrie in 1862, and then at the Louvre from 1863, the pieces from the Campana collection helped create a vogue for this type of jewelry. They thus played an important role in the history of archaeological jewelry throughout Europe at a time when the fine arts and industry were coming together, resulting in the creation in 1863 in Paris of the Union Centrale des Beaux-Arts Appliqués à l’Industrie and in 1872 in Rome of an industrial arts museum.
Today, the jewelry from the Campana collection forms a major part of the Department of Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities’ collection of goldwork."

[CLICLASP]

Thanks for cooperating ! Hope you have fun there

Yes, most of the famous Campana collection - now in Le Louvre museum Paris - was bought upon order of french Emperor Napoleon the Third (you know, husband of famous pearl lover Eugenie Empress, but w'll talk of that pearl story later ... keep on checking )

So the answers are :
- about where from : Roman world (was wide ...)
- about how old : I to III century AD for last 2 earrings
- about material :
* first earrings pearls and gold
* second ones, emerald, garnet and pearl

Aren't they REALLY cute ?

- about where I found them : throughout European Museum, mostly in Paris where I live (sorry no pearl farms there but some museums )

[CLICLASP]

Now look at this beautiful necklace : pearls and guess which stone
Still wearable today (I like the clasp too )

If you find where it was found, "I eat my hat "

But try and enjoy

[pattye]

HUM, those stones are pretty large, and mottled, looks very old, could be emerald, jade, but my guess is turquoise or tourmaline. Found in Mexico or Central America????

This is a really fun game, CliClasp! But I am not good!!

Pattye
so many pearls, so little time

[GemGeek]

It looks like Transvaal Jade, which is a form of Grossular Garnet. Of course, since that is off the top of my head, I could be wrong about the Transvaal Jade, but there is a kind of grossular green garnet that looks like jade.

[GemGeek]

How about a closer photo?

[La Contessa]

You are an excellent motivator - teacher!!!!

[La Contessa]

Chrysoprase which was used in Egypt, Greece and Rome and

The clasp is phenomenal - like locust wings - hmmmm.

[CLICLASP]

Hello PG pearl secret hunters, glad you enjoy it ... and we are only in antique history, 20 centuries to come

what an imagination !

Here an enlargement of photo detail, see the delicate gold and stones skilled work.

To help you to find where it was found, here is the story of the city :
A woman icon belonging to world' history was burnt there by ennemy while her country let her down ... so you see !
but she did not wear the necklace, just found in same town ,

Let's go hunting ?