Bonhams 1793 : A miniature Byzantine gold cross and chain

A miniature Byzantine gold cross and chain
Circa 5th-7th Century A.D.
Suspended from a plaited chain with ridged terminals and suspension loops at either end, the hollow cross with arms of rectangular cross-section, a central circular bezel re-set with a cabochon garnet, the front of the arms decorated with granulation arranged in triangular motifs, three pearl pendants suspended from three loops below, 2¼in (5.7cm) long

Estimate:

£5,000 - 7,000
US$ 7,500 - 11,000
€5,800 - 8,200

Footnotes

Provenance:
German private collection, Munich. Acquired from the London art market in the late 1990s.

Literature:
It is likely that this cross is from an elaborate earring, cf. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore, No. 57.1729.

Exhibited:
Dioezesanmuseum, Paderborn, 2001-2005.
Archaeological State Museum, Munich, 2004-2005.

Published:
C. Stiegemann, (ed.), Byzanz das Licht aus dem Osten. Kult und Alltag im Byzantinischen Reich vom 4-15 Jahrhundert, Paderborn, 2002, IV.25.
L. Wamser, (ed.) Die Welt von Byzanz - Europas oestliches Erbe. Glanz, Krisen un Fortleben einer tausendjaehrigen Kultur, Munich, 2004, p. 310-311, no. 528.