Pectoral cross with busts of Jesus Christ and saints, silver-gilt. On the reverse, the engraved inscription refers to its owner: Epiphanios. Period: Middle Byzantine; circa: 11th c. The Benaki Museum of Greek Culture is housed in one of the most beautiful neoclassical-style buildings in Athens, near the National Garden and the Hellenic Parliament.
Medallion with Saint Luke from an Icon Frame, Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: ca. 1100, Made in Constantinople, Materials: Gold, silver, and enamel worked in cloisonné, Dimensions: Diam: 3 1/4 in. (8.3 cm) Mount: 20 1/2 x 15 x 7/8 in. (52.1 x 38.1 x 2.2 cm), On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 303. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.
Tunic from Palermo; Blue and red velvet, gold embroidery, gold appliqués with cloisonné enamel and filligree, pearls; l. 141,5 cm, 343 cm wide at hem. Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: 2nd quarter of the 12th century. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. The Kunsthistorisches Museum was built in 1891 near the Imperial Palace to house the extensive collections of the imperial family. With its vast array of eminent works and the largest Bruegel collection in the world, it is considered one of the most eminent museums in the world. Opening hours June to August Daily, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Thu, 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. September to May Tue – Sun, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Thu, 10 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Gold coin; Ruler: Manuel I Comnenus, Byzantine emperor; circa: 1143-1180; Minted in: Constantinople. Weight: 4.484 grammes. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year. Fast facts about the British Museum: Founded: 1753, Collection size: 8 million objects, Oldest object in the collection: Stone chopping tool (nearly 2 million years old).
Bowl; circular medallion with half-figure of a nimbed saint, St Sergios. Period: Early Byzantine; circa: 641-651; Materials: Silver. Production place: Made in Tarsus, Anatolia (Modern Turkey). Found: Acheripoetos Monastery, Cyprus,Nicosia. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year.
Fast facts about the British Museum: Founded: 1753, Collection size: 8 million objects, Oldest object in the collection: Stone chopping tool (nearly 2 million years old).
Triptych Showing the Forty Martyrs, Period: Middle Byzantine; circa: Late 11th – early 12th century. Materials: ivory and silver (frame). Technique: carved and painted. Dimensions: 18,5×24,2 cm. The collection of the State Hermitage includes over 3 million works of art and world culture artefacts. It contains paintings, graphic works, sculptures, works of applied art, archaeological artefacts and numismatic objects. The Hermitage is considered to have been founded in 1764, when Empress Catherine the Great acquired an impressive collection of works from the Berlin merchant Johann Ernst Gotzkowsky. The museum celebrates the anniversary of its founding each year on 7 December, St. Catherine’s Day. Opening Hours: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday: 10.30-18.00 Wednesday, Friday: 10.30-21.00 Closed: Monday.
Gold Coin. Ruler: Leo III. Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: 717-741. Minted in: Ravenna. Weight: 1.484 grammes. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year. Fast facts about the British Museum: Founded: 1753, Collection size: 8 million objects, Oldest object in the collection: Stone chopping tool (nearly 2 million years old).
Roundel with Emperor John II Comnenus. Period: Byzantine, ca. 1110 – 1118. Material: marble. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.
Spherical Small Container (pyxis) with Representations of Christ, Virgin and two Archangels. Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 6th–7th century A.D. Dimensions: Height x diameter: 7 x 9 cm (2 3/4 x 3 9/16 in.). Materials: Silver with gilding. This gilded silver pyxis of round kind was a container for antiques or scent made use of in Early Byzantine church ceremonies. The 4 figures created in repousse method reveal a bearded Christ offering a true blessing, the Virgin holding a symbol symbolic of her duties as Mother of God (Theotokos), as well as 2 angels worn lengthy sleeved chitons with segmenta on their shoulders and also hems. The cover is shed however could have had a dedicatory inscription.
The MFA is open 7 days a week. Monday and Tuesday 10 am–5 pm, Wednesday–Friday 10 am–10 pm, Saturday and Sunday 10 am–5 pm.
Signet Ring of John, Imperial Spatharios, Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: 10th century, Materials: Gold, niello. On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 300 . Museum Description: “The title spatharios, Sword-Bearer, was originally an honor reserved for the imperial bodyguard. By the middle Byzantine period, it had become an honorific title only, indicating Ioannis’s respectable status.” The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.
Base for a Cross, Period: Middle Byzantine circa: 11th century. Made in Constantinople. Materials: Copper alloy, cast, filed, reamed, and scraped. Dimensions: Overall: 5 x 1 15/16 x 2 1/16 in. (12.7 x 4.9 x 5.2 cm); Top (Diameter-Top exterior): 1 1/16in. (2.7cm). On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 303. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.
Dish of brown, fine-grained clay covered with a white slip. Period: Middle Byzantine; circa: Late 12th-early 13th c. The decoration is in champlevé, while the individual details are incised. A large standing bird is pictured between two bird-shaped animals resembling griffons but without wings. Dimensions: H. 0.07, Diam. of rim 0.235, Diam. of base 0.08 m. On the ground tufted plants. Yellow, very good quality glaze covers the inner surface and the edge of the rim on the outside. The Benaki Museum of Greek Culture is housed in one of the most beautiful neoclassical-style buildings in Athens, near the National Garden and the Hellenic Parliament.
Cross of Romanos II and Basil II, Period: Middle Byzantine, Date: 960-963. Materials: silver and niello. Purchased by Mildred and Robert Woods Bliss from George Zacos (dealer) Istanbul, July 24th, 1953; Gift of Milderd and Robert Woods Bliss to Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington, DC, 1953; The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.
Silver Dish; Period: Early Byzantine. 6th.c.(late) on a shallow foot; the centre decorated with Eros astride a ketos (sea monster) which he attacks with a trident. Found/Acquired: Anatolia, Modern Turkey. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year. Fast facts about the British Museum: Founded: 1753, Collection size: 8 million objects, Oldest object in the collection: Stone chopping tool (nearly 2 million years old).
Gold Goblet with Personifications of Cyprus, Rome, Constantinople, and Alexandria, Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: 700s. Culture: Avar or Byzantine, Materials: Gold. On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 301.
Museum description :“This goblet is decorated with female personifications of four major ecclesiastical centers in the Byzantine world. The awkwardly written identifications suggest that this goblet was an Avar attempt to imitate a Byzantine chalice.” The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.
Icon with Christ Pantokrator, Period: 11th–12th century, Middle Byzantine. Material: Ivory. Dimensions: 3 13/16 x 3 x 3/16 in. (9.7 x 7.6 x 0.4 cm). On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 303. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.
Double-Sided Pendant Icon with the Virgin and Christ Pantokrator, Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: 1100. Made in Constantinople. Materials: Gold, cloisonné enamel. On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 300. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) is one of the world’s largest and finest art museums. Its collection includes more than two million works of art spanning five thousand years of world culture, from prehistory to the present and from every part of the globe. Public Hours: 10:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Open seven days a week.
Paten with Christogram and Repousse Border, Period: Early Byzantine, circa Mid 6th Century. Materials: silver, gilding and niello. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.
Paten with the Communion of the Apostles, Period: Early Byzantine (565-578 A.D.) Materials: silver, gilding and niello. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.
Plate with Cross and Greek Inscription ‘Hope of God’, Period: Early Byzantine, 7th century A.D. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.
Earring; Period: Middle Byzantine circa: 10thC-12thC. Materials: gold. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year. Fast facts about the British Museum: Founded: 1753, Collection size: 8 million objects, Oldest object in the collection: Stone chopping tool (nearly 2 million years old).