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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1935.35.61
Title
Spiral Armlet
Other Titles
Alternate Title: Spiral Bracelet from a Statue spiral bracelet of bronze, from a statue
Classification
Jewelry
Work Type
bracelet
Date
15th-13th century BCE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Europe
Period
Bronze Age, Late
Culture
Greek
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/303966

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Bronze
Technique
Cast and hammered
Dimensions
10.1 x 1.9 cm (at central bulge) (4 x 3/4 in.)
Technical Details

Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Bronze:
Cu, 94.7; Sn, 5.08; Pb, less than 0.025; Zn, 0.002; Fe, 0.06; Ni, 0.01; Ag, 0.01; Sb, 0.04; As, 0.11; Bi, less than 0.025; Co, less than 0.005; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, less than 0.001

J. Riederer

Technical Observations: The patina is green with spots of brown burial accretions. Underlying dark red corrosion products are visible under the green. The surface is rough in many areas, but fairly well preserved in others. A 7-cm chip loss reveals deep, possibly complete, mineralization in this area and serves as evidence of long-term burial.

The tapered arms were probably hammered from a thicker cast bar-shape. The spirals would then have been cold worked into the two ends. The process would have involved multiple annealings to maintain malleability.


Henry Lie (submitted 2012)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Bettina J. Kahnweiler, gift; to the Fogg Art Museum, 1935.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Miss Bettina J. Kahnweiler
Accession Year
1935
Object Number
1935.35.61
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums
This heavy bronze object, which ends in spirals, was cast solid. There is no evidence of surface decoration. One spiral curves upward, the other downward. The central portion is thicker than the ends. It is circular in section. It may have been an armlet. While its date and place of manufacture remain uncertain, a tentative attribution to the Late Bronze Age in the Balkans may serve as a basis for further research (1).

NOTES:

1. For similar bronze objects from Philia, see I. Kilian-Dirlmeier, Kleinfunde aus dem Athena Itonia-Heiligtum bei Philia (Thessalien) (Mainz, 2002) nos. 177-78, 180, and 189-90, pl. 10. See also H. Philipp, Bronzeschmuck aus Olympia, Olympische Forschungen 13 (Berlin, 1981) nos. 538, 541, and 809, pls. 7, 42, and 51, all with double spirals.


David G. Mitten

Subjects and Contexts

  • Ancient Bronzes

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu