Pendant with Portrait Intaglio

Heraldic Eagle. Decorated with a garnet and glass paste. Material: gold. Period: Early Byzantine; circa:  6th-7th century. 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; Cross pendant; Period: Early Byzantine; 5thc.-6thc.; Materials: glass, amber, amethyst and carnelian beads. Found: Qaw el-Kebir, Egypt, Upper Egypt. British Museum is closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, but is open every other day of the year.

Solidus of Constans II, Period: Early Byzantine; circa: 661–663. Minted in: Constantinople, Material: Gold. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 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.

Medallion with Saint John the Evangelist from an Icon Frame, Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: 1100, Made in Constantinople, Materials: Gold, silver, and enamel worked in cloisonné. 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.

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).

Pectoral with Coins and Pseudo-Medallion, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 539–50, Materials: Gold, niello, On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 302. 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.

Ring in openwork filigree, Period: Early Byzantine circa (A.D. 550–650). Materials: Gold. 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.

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.

Crescent-Shaped Earring, Materials: Gold filigree with cloisonné enamel. Period: Middle Byzantine circa: 1000-1100. Dimensions:  2.3 x 2.6 cm (7/8 x 1 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.

Ring, Materials: Gold. Period: Early Byzantine; circa: 6th-7th c. Ring with busts of saints on the shank and a representation of the Annunciation on the bezel with details picked out in niello. 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.

Horse and Lion Hanging, Period: Early Byzantine, 6th century A.D. Materials: wool and linen. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.

Earring with Emerald and Sapphire,  Period: Early Byzantine circa: early 5th century. Size: 6.5 (2.6). Material: gold and gems. Found in 1910 during restoration work in Piazza della Consolazione, Rome. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.

Necklace, Period: Early Byzantine, circa: 6th century. Made in Constantinople. Material: gold. Technique: carving, engraving. Dimensions: Lenght 27 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.

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.

Ring of Leontios, Period: Middle Byzantine, circa: 1000, Materials: Gold, niello, Inscribed: “Lord help Leontius, Patrician and Count of imperial Obsikion guarded by God”. The ring came from Leontios of the district of Opsikion, in exactly what is currently northwestern Turkey. Patrikios as well as komes were Roman titles that moved in definition throughout the Byzantine period; it promises that Leontios was the guv of the district or an upper-level general. 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.

Pectoral Cross. Period: Middle Byzantine; circa: 900s. Made in: Constantinople. Materials: gold, gilt-silver, and cloisonné enamel. Overall: h. 12.4 cm (4 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.

Tremissis of Justinian I, Period: Early Byzantine Period, circa: 552–565 A.D. , Minted in: Ravenna, Material: Gold. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 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.

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.

Marriage Belt, Period: Early Byzantine, circa Late 6th-to-early 7th century A.D. Material: Gold. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m., except for federal holidays.

Lamp and Stand, Period: Early Byzantine, 4th century. Materials: Silver. 9.2 x 16 x 7 cm (3 9/16 x 6 1/4 x 2 3/4 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.