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Cluster Brooch with Letters Spelling "Amor"

mid-15th century
On view at The Met Cloisters in Gallery 14
This gold cluster jewel includes the Latin word amor (love) in delicate gold letters. It could have been worn either as a pendant or a brooch, and in portraits of young women many similar jewels are seen in their hair or at the shoulder or neck. Expensive jewelry played an important role in betrothal and marriage, and the groom gave brooches to the bride as tokens of love. In 1447, for example, Marco Parenti gave his betrothed, Caterina Strozzi, a golden brooch with two sapphires and three pearls to be worn on her shoulder.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Cluster Brooch with Letters Spelling "Amor"
  • Date: mid-15th century
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: Gold, pearls, diamond, emerald paste, and silver pin
  • Dimensions: Overall: 1 1/8 x 15/16 x 9/16 in. (2.9 x 2.4 x 1.4 cm)
  • Classification: Metalwork-Gold
  • Credit Line: The Cloisters Collection, 1957
  • Object Number: 57.26.1
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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