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Necklace
Sui dynasty (581–619)
Gold inlaid with pearl and stone
L. 16 7/8 in. (43 cm)
Excavated from the tomb (dated 608) of Li Jingxun, Xi’an,
Shaanxi Province, 1957
National Museum of China
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Made of gold, pearls, lapis lazuli, and other stones, this exquisite
necklace is one of the few examples of jewelry found in Chinese
tombs of the sixth and seventh centuries. It adorned the young
princess Li Jingxun, when she was laid to rest in 608. The combination
of Mediterranean and Iranian taste in the design elements suggests
a place of manufacture in Iran or western Central Asia, in a region
where these two worlds met. It seems likely that the necklace
reached China via trade along the Silk Road.
A Closer Look
This child-size necklace is an example of the valuable yet portable
trade articles that were ideal for transporting across the Silk
Road. Although it is not possible to determine exactly where this
necklace was crafted, it is exquisitely made using a variety of
jewelry-making techniques known throughout Asia.
The jewelry-making techniques used to fashion this necklace match
those used in ancient Hellenic, Roman, Parthian, and Sasanian
jewelry. It was made in gold that was cut and shaped, then bordered
with fine gold granules (made from the tip of a wire). The beads
from which the central elements are hung were made in intricately
designed filigree wire and set with pearls. Lapis and other stones
(possibly red opal) were cut and set into the various segments,
which were then bordered with pearls. An unusual grayish-blue
sapphire is set in the central pendant. These techniques and styles
used in making this necklace spread from the West and the Middle
East into China and the rest of Asia following the conquests of
Alexander the Great in the fourth century B.C.
(Excerpted from correspondence with Joanne Lyman,
manager, Jewelry Reproduction, MMA.)
Notice
• The variety of geometric shapes that make
up the necklace and how they repeat
• The different textures incorporated into
the necklace design
Consider
• Trade causes the movement and exchange of
not just material goods but also of technology. Think of articles
in contemporary daily life that are made as the result of knowledge
acquired from a variety of geographical sources.
• The status of this young princess and the affection
felt toward her, which resulted in the inclusion of such splendid
articles in her tomb.
• This tomb is rare because it was not looted,
as was common in antiquity. The construction of a pavilion above
the grave seems to have hidden the richly furnished tomb from
robbers.
Visit the Met
• An exceptional ensemble of Hellenistic jewelry
is known as The
Ganymede Jewelry, which is made using the granulation metalworking
technique.
• The Met has an intricate ladies’ hair
ornament, worked in gold and inlaid with turquoise, on display
in the Charlotte C. Weber Galleries (31.54.1).
Did You Know?
The deep blue stones in this necklace are lapis lazuli,
a stone only found in Afghanistan in ancient times. Lapis had
been exported throughout the Near East since at least the middle
of the third millennium B.C. The Chinese also ground lapis lazuli
into a powder and used it as a pigment for paintings.
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