Gold necklace with sapphires, amethysts, emeralds and pearls. Period: Early Byzantine. Place/Findspot: Antinoë in Egypt. The Ravenna mosaics portray this kind of precious jewelry, widespread during Early Christian times, being worn by ladies of the imperial court of Theodora.
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. It was converted into a museum in order to shelter the collections of Antonis Benakis and was donated to the Greek nation by himself and his three sisters, Alexandra, Penelope and Argine. Following its most recent refurbishment (1989–2000), the building houses a unique exhibition on Greek culture arranged diachronically from prehistory to the 20th century.
Necklace with Pendant of Aphrodite Anadyomene, Period: Early Byzantine, circa early 7th Century. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.
Plate with a Tigress Attacking an Ibex, Eastern Mediterranean, Material: Silver. Period: Early Byzantine circa: A.D. 450–525. 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.
Three sections of a Gold necklace. Materials: sapphires, emeralds, cornelians and pearls. Period: Early Byzantine; circa: 5th c. Made in: Alexandria, Egypt. Their height varies from 0.05 to 0.06 m. 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.
Slipper; leather; with pointed toe and thick sole with gilt borders on the upper part and the figure of an animal. Culture: Coptic. Period: Early Byzantine; circa: 4thC-6thC; Made in: Egypt. Length: 262 millimetres. 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).
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.
Calyx (Chalice), Period: Middle Byzantine, 900s-1000s. Blood jasper (heliotrope) with gilt-copper mounts. The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.
Half Tremissis of Justinian I, 527-565, Minted in: Constantinople. Material: Gold. Diameter: w. 1.5 cm (9/16 in.). Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.
Earring; Period: Middle Byzantine; 11thc.-12thc. Material: gold. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year.
Fragment, Sleeve Ornament of a Tunic, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 5th – 7th century. Made in: Egypt. Materials: tabby weave with inwoven tapestry ornament, linen and wool. Overall: 15.6 x 20 cm (6 1/8 x 7 13/16 in.). The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.
Steelyard Weight with a Bust of a Byzantine Empress and a Hook. This Byzantine steelyard weight dates from the first half of the 5th century. The bronze hook would permit it to be suspended from and moved along a ruled steelyard to determine the weight of an item hung from the opposite end. 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.
Pendant with Portrait Intaglio, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 500s. Materials: Garnet with gold filigree setting. Size: 3.4 x 2.3 cm (1 5/16 x 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.
Fragment of a Necklace Consisting of Eight Coins, Period: Early Byzantine. circa: Between 637 and 646. Found: Pereshchepina Complex. near Poltava, the Village of Malaya Pereshchepina. Material: gold. 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.
Crescent-Shaped Pendant, Period: Middle Byzantine; circa: 11th century. Materials: gold filigree with cloisonné enamel. Dimensions: 3 x 3.2 cm (1 3/16 x 1 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.
Medal of Emperor Constantine The Great, Period: Early Byzantine circa: 4th century, Materials: silver. On view at ” Raum-1 Medaillen”. The Museum is one of the oldest collections of its kind in Europe. Its beginnings date back to the second half of the 16th century.
Gold Finger Ring, Period: Early Byzantine (6 th. c.) flat hoop cut into eight alternating circular and hexagonal panels; circular panels engraved alternately with dove and palmette; hexagonal panels with S-shaped line crossed by bar, lines terminating with punched dots. Found/Acquired: Beirut. 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).
Earrings (pair), Period: Early Byzantine; circa: 600s; Materials: gold, pearls, glass, and emeralds. The Cleveland Art Museum Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. Closed Mondays.
Chalice, Period: Early Byzantine, ca. 527 – 565 A.D. Materials: silver and niello. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.
Reliquary of St. Zacharias, Period: Early Byzantine, 6th Century, Material: Gold and gems. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.
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.
Coptic Textile fragment, Period: Early Byzantine circa: 4th–6th century A.D. Object Place: Egypt. Materials: Linen plain weave with wool tapestry insert. Dimensions: 34.5 x 65 cm (13 9/16 x 25 9/16 in.).
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.


