3 Early Christian Stone Cross Pendants | Openwork Cross, Incised Circle Motifs
Eastern Mediterranean, Byzantine Empire, ca. 500–1200 CE. Three small carved-stone amulets. The largest is a Latin cross of pale cream stone, its arms widening to squared ends and its surfaces worn smooth by handling. The second is a dark plaque, probably steatite, with an arched and stepped upper edge, incised on both faces with six ring-and-dot motifs. The third, in pale green-blue stone, is an openwork cross with pierced quarters and flaring arms, set with the same concentric circles. The ring-and-dot motif appears across Byzantine and neighboring workshops as a protective device, and objects this small were likely worn at the throat as personal amulets. Size of largest: 1.29" H x 0.99" W x 0.24" D (3.3 cm H x 2.5 cm W x 0.6 cm D).
The ringed dot (a drilled center encircled by one or two compass-scribed rings) is among the most persistent ornaments in the eastern Mediterranean, appearing on bone, stone, and metal from antiquity through the medieval centuries. Its longevity owes something to technology, since a simple center-bit drill produces it quickly and evenly, and something to belief: the motif reads as an eye, and eyes deflect the evil eye. On a Christian amulet the device therefore doubles the protection, pairing the cross with an older prophylactic vocabulary that the Church absorbed rather than erased.
Steatite was a favored medium for Byzantine personal devotional carving from roughly the eleventh century onward, soft enough to cut with a knife yet taking a fine dark polish, and surviving examples range from icons of saints to plain pectoral crosses like these.
Provenance: private Vero Beach, Florida, USA collection, acquired before 1998
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #204843
Condition
Losses to both cross pendants. Some pitting, nicks, small chips, and abrasions throughout, all commensurate with age. Otherwise, all wearable as pendants with nice presentations and scattered earthen deposits.
Eastern Mediterranean, Byzantine Empire, ca. 500–1200 CE. Three small carved-stone amulets. The largest is a Latin cross of pale cream stone, its arms widening to squared ends and its surfaces worn smooth by handling. The second is a dark plaque, probably steatite, with an arched and stepped upper edge, incised on both faces with six ring-and-dot motifs. The third, in pale green-blue stone, is an openwork cross with pierced quarters and flaring arms, set with the same concentric circles. The ring-and-dot motif appears across Byzantine and neighboring workshops as a protective device, and objects this small were likely worn at the throat as personal amulets. Size of largest: 1.29" H x 0.99" W x 0.24" D (3.3 cm H x 2.5 cm W x 0.6 cm D).
The ringed dot (a drilled center encircled by one or two compass-scribed rings) is among the most persistent ornaments in the eastern Mediterranean, appearing on bone, stone, and metal from antiquity through the medieval centuries. Its longevity owes something to technology, since a simple center-bit drill produces it quickly and evenly, and something to belief: the motif reads as an eye, and eyes deflect the evil eye. On a Christian amulet the device therefore doubles the protection, pairing the cross with an older prophylactic vocabulary that the Church absorbed rather than erased.
Steatite was a favored medium for Byzantine personal devotional carving from roughly the eleventh century onward, soft enough to cut with a knife yet taking a fine dark polish, and surviving examples range from icons of saints to plain pectoral crosses like these.
Provenance: private Vero Beach, Florida, USA collection, acquired before 1998
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700.
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #204843
Condition
Losses to both cross pendants. Some pitting, nicks, small chips, and abrasions throughout, all commensurate with age. Otherwise, all wearable as pendants with nice presentations and scattered earthen deposits.
