A Lunula (collar), made of precious metals, was discovered during the archaeological research of Tsvyatkova tumulus, Kosmatkite Necropolis in the vicinity of Shipka – Sheynovo villages.
The Lunula is made in combination of several different elements and materials. The collar base is with a moon shape, made of solid iron covering the chest, the shoulders and the back of the person. Embossed silver plate with thick gilding and exquisite decoration completely covers the iron base.
The restored artefact belongs to the group of the so-called „Mezek“ type breastplates, common in Thrace in the second half of the 4th century BC.
The decorated item is part of a protective parade armament. Its discovery, alongside with the numerous artefacts such as: arrowheads, knives, spear, horse skeleton, many horse harness applications, silver fragments and elements of decoration and other objects as well, suggest that the burial belonged to a nobleman.
A carved agate kohl pot or cosmetics phial formed as two addorsed rams’ foreparts and two bulls’, the rim formed by the conjoined horns of the rams. 99 grams, 60mm (2 ¼").
The obverse has the image Dionysos wearing an ivy-wreath and the reverse has the inscription ΘAΣION behind Herakles, who’s wearing a lion’s skin headdress, kneeling and shooting an arrow, a K is inscribed on the right, all within a linear square within an incuse square. This rare coin sold at auction for around 82,500 USD.
Thasos is an island off the ancient Thracian coast in the northern Agean Sea. The island was important in wine trade and also controlled rich gold and silver mines on the mainland. It was colonized at an early date by Phoenicians who founded a temple to the god Melqart, whom the Greeks identified as “Tyrian Heracles.” The temple still existed in the time of Herodotus.
Rare Greek Bronze Amulet of the Goddess Baubo, 5th-3rd Century BC
A suspension hoop is at top of head of the goddess, who is seen nude with her hands on her knees, revealing her over-sized vulva. Baubo was a fun-loving, bawdy, yet wise, goddess who played a crucial role in preserving the fertility of the land in ancient Greece. This piece may have been worn by a person connected with the Eleusinian Mysteries.1.25 inches (3.1cm) high
Eastern Greek Gold Double Horse Earrings, Caucasian, 5th-4th Century BC
A matched pair of hollow-formed sheet gold earrings, each an addorsed pair of horse-heads with filigree and granule detailing, filigree loop to each mouth, coil to each forehead, six loops to the underside each with a chain and sheet gold date(?) pendant; to each face an inset glass cabochon; twisted wire loop above. 18 grams total, 59-63mm (2 ½")
In ancient Greece, wreaths made from plants like laurel, ivy, and myrtle were awarded to athletes, soldiers, and royalty. Similar wreaths were designed in gold and silver for the same purposes or for religious functions. This example conveys the language of love. A plant sacred to the goddess Aphrodite, myrtle was a symbol of love. Greeks wore wreaths made of real myrtle leaves at weddings and banquets, received them as athletic prizes and awards for military victories, and wore them as crowns to show royal status. By the Hellenistic period (300–30 BC), the wreaths were made of gold foil; too fragile to be worn, they were created primarily to be buried with the dead as symbols of life’s victories. The naturalistic myrtle leaves and blossoms on this wreath were cut from thin sheets of gold, exquisitely finished with stamped and incised details, and then wired onto the stems. Most that survive today were found in graves.
Egyptian Cartonnage Sandals, Late Period, C. 664-332 BC
With polychrome painted details, impractical for use in the real world, these were funerary offerings placed with the mummy inside the coffin and to be used by the deceased in the afterlife.
Greek Gold Earrings with Goddess Motifs, 4th Century BC
A pair of gold earrings with central shield decorated with bead wire to the edges; within each shield a series of loops bordered by bead wire; to the center a rosette consisting of four layers of petals with concave centers and with bead wire edges, with central bead; to the edge of each shield a series of heart-shaped leaves and two layer rosettes with acanthus leaf ornament to the center; from each smaller rosette a miniature figure of a goddess with hands to breasts and wearing a sheath dress; from the central acanthus leaf is an inverted pyramid pendant with miniature rosettes to each corner and bead wire edge with loops below; to each face of the pyramid a palmette motif in bead wire; granule beads to the base of each pyramid; from each of the heart-shaped leaves on the shield a loop in loop chain joined at the bottom by a rosette from which hangs a ribbed seed-like pendant; wire loop to the back. 29.93 grams total, 65mm (2 ½")
Disc and pyramid earrings are widely found throughout the Greek world: in addition to the East Greek examples, they have been discovered in the North Pontic region, on Cyprus, in Greece and in South Italy. The East Greek jewelers seem to have been particularly fond of pendants in the form of Nikai, Erotes and female figures.
The small pendant images on this earring bear similarities to motifs associated with the so called ‘bee goddess’ that was popular in Asia Minor and referred to as “The Pure Mother Bee” in ancient Greece. Honey was regarded as an elixir in Mediterranean societies; a magic potion that ensured a long and healthy life. In addition to being an elixir, honey was a healing substance with a variety of medicinal uses due to its antiseptic qualities.
