Necklace thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Jewellery, Rooms 91, The William and Judith Bollinger Gallery

Necklace

ca. 1870 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The archaeological discoveries of the 19th century led to a greater awareness and understanding of ancient jewellery. For the first time these intricate gold pieces were collected, studied and published, and both the originals and the published illustrations of them were a rich new source for designers of jewellery. The resulting 'archaeological-style' jewellery was fashionable from around 1860 until at least the 1880s. The Italian firm of Castellani was at the forefront of this style. Castellani both made jewellery and owned an extensive collection of antiquities. This necklace is a copy of a Greek original from around 330-300 BC that was excavated at Great Blinitza, in the Crimea in 1864, now at the Hermitage Museum.
Possibly the version shown by Alessandro Castellani at the International Exhibitions in Philadelphia in 1876 and 1878.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Woven gold band, with a fringe of hollow gold pendants
Brief description
Necklace. Italy, 1864-76; made by Castellani.
Gold, chased, with granulation and filigree
Physical description
Gold necklace. The medallions of the pendants represent Thetis riding a sea-monster and carrying the armour of Achilles; hung with rosettes and bud-like drops.Applied plaque with the Castellani monogram. Made after Greek originals of about 330-300 BC
Dimensions
  • Length: 35.0cm
  • Height: 5.1cm
  • Depth: 1.2cm
Style
Marks and inscriptions
Monogram of two 'C's (Addorsed Cs in appied wire (not any of the marks illustrated in Munn, 1984))
Object history
Purchased from the sale of Alessandro Castellani's effects, Rome 1884.
Made after Greek originals of about 360 BC excavated at Great Blinitza in South Russia in 1864 and acquired for the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg. The pendants (or similar specimens) were shown by Castellani at the Paris Exhibition of 1878.

Castellani Jewellery Exhibition RF.2003/302
Subjects depicted
Summary
The archaeological discoveries of the 19th century led to a greater awareness and understanding of ancient jewellery. For the first time these intricate gold pieces were collected, studied and published, and both the originals and the published illustrations of them were a rich new source for designers of jewellery. The resulting 'archaeological-style' jewellery was fashionable from around 1860 until at least the 1880s. The Italian firm of Castellani was at the forefront of this style. Castellani both made jewellery and owned an extensive collection of antiquities. This necklace is a copy of a Greek original from around 330-300 BC that was excavated at Great Blinitza, in the Crimea in 1864, now at the Hermitage Museum.
Possibly the version shown by Alessandro Castellani at the International Exhibitions in Philadelphia in 1876 and 1878.
Associated objects
Collection
Accession number
638-1884

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdFebruary 25, 2003
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest