Gold Necklace with Amethysts, Glass, and Gold Beads

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Using gold wires, Byzantine goldsmiths worked the delicate filigree clasp on each of these necklaces. The Greeks wore amethyst, a violet colored quartz found in jewelry across the ancient world, as an amulet to protect against the effects of wine and poison and to keep them from harm in battle.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.

Metropolitan Museum of Art