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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1969.177.29
Title
Bracelet with Rams' Head Terminals
Classification
Jewelry
Work Type
bracelet
Date
6th-5th century BCE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Asia, Iran
Period
Achaemenid period
Culture
Iranian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/304310

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Bronze
Technique
Cast, lost-wax process
Dimensions
diam. 6.25 cm (2 7/16 in.)
Technical Details

Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Bronze:
Cu, 93.05; Sn, 6.53; Pb, less than 0.04; Zn, 0.016; Fe, 0.1; Ni, 0.14; Ag, 0.01; Sb, 0.1; As, less than 0.10; Bi, less than 0.025; Co, 0.055; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, less than 0.001
J. Riederer

Technical Observations: The patina is green with brownish burial accretions and translucent brown residues. The tip of one of the ram’s horns is missing. Ultraviolet light reveals bright white fluorescent remains of an adhesive, perhaps from a label, at the center of the bracelet.

The object was cast by the lost-wax process in one piece with the stylized ram's heads, which were modeled in the wax. The diameter of the hoop seems to widen slightly at the ends, but it is otherwise fairly even. It is not clear whether the piece was bent into shape or cast that way. There are a few facets on the undecorated parts, as well as striations from some kind of abrasive that could be from manufacture or cleaning.


Francesca G. Bewer (submitted 2011)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Harry J. Denberg, New York, NY (by 1969), gift; to the Fogg Art Museum, 1969.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Harry J. Denberg
Accession Year
1969
Object Number
1969.177.29
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Descriptions

Description
The terminals of this bracelet are in the shape of rams’ heads. The hoop of the bracelet is circular in section. The heads are highly stylized, and when viewed from above they resemble five-point stars. The animals have backward-curving horns with one spiral and end in points that stick out from the head, and a long thin snout, with no other anatomical details indicated. The undersides are flat except for the horns, which dip down below the lowest levels of the head.

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