Who needs jewelry fit for a queen when you can buy baubles meant for a pharaoh?
Those seeking precious gemstones can skip a trip to Bvlgari, Cartier or Harry Winston this Valentine’s Day and pop into Christie’s instead.
The venerable auction house is unloading one-of-a-kind gold necklaces, rings, trinkets and more from ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt that cost far less than modern pieces from modern luxury designers in a forthcoming auction.
The “incredibly rare” historical artifacts, most of which are actually wearable, were owned by someone who lived in B.C. and often come with great mystery.
“I’d much rather have an amethyst necklace with a strong historical presence rather than something else that everyone is going to wear and look the same,” Hannah Fox Solomon, a senior specialist and head of the department of the antiquities at Christie’s, told The Post.
“You could wear this and have a unique, special conversation piece rather than what all your friends wear for a fraction of the price.”
Compared to the classic Cartier Love Bracelet — the $8,000 minimalist bangle that requires a screwdriver to fasten and is beloved by celebrities and fashionistas alike — Christie’s estimated that a set of gold bracelets from ancient Rome is expected to go for $4,000 to $6,000 at Feb. 4 auction.
A trio of gold rings — one affixed with a carnelian stone etched with a sphinx, another made into a tiny replica of a lantern and the third crafted to look like two heads — are expected to go for $5,000 to $7,000.
While their entire history is unknown — the pieces up for auction were part of the Kofler-Truniger collection and in possession of a husband-and-wife duo before being sold to a private individual — the finger adornments are estimated to be nearly 2,000 years old.
Similarly, an amethyst beaded necklace from ancient Rome estimated to be from 1st century B.C. to 1st century A.D. is expected to fetch $6,000 to $8,000, far below the cost of a trendy 10-motif onyx Alhambra necklace from Van Cleef & Arpels, which rings in at nearly $9,000.
“While it’s less than a Bvlgari necklace, this is the best of the best of what we offer,” Solomon said, recalling one client who bought similar beaded necklaces in bulk to hand out to her staff.
Two different pairs of earrings are also slated to be auctioned. One pair from ancient Greece features granulated gold eagles perched beside tiny green enamel birds, which is expected to ask $10,000 to $15,000.
The other pair, from the Geometric Period around 750 to 725 BC, are affixed with gold discs with a hollow in the center where a gem might have been. They look almost like an ear cuff of some sort, and Solomon quipped that they are often likened to an in-ear Bluetooth device
“These are incredibly rare,” she said. “They are earrings. How they’re worn is up for debate.”
The pieces, of which there are only three known examples today, are expected to fetch $10,000 to $15,000 — despite the mystery of how to fashion them.
But why so affordable? It’s certainly not because the pieces aren’t precious, Solomon said.
“Ancient jewelry is much less expensive than what retail is right now,” she said. In fact, some of the items up for auction are remarkably rare.
“It’s not like a Warhol where you say, ‘I love this print… I want another one that looks exactly the same,’” she said.
The most expensive item to be auctioned, however, is a gold strap necklace from Ancient Greece, which is adorned with pendants resembling beech nuts that are attached along the length of the necklace. The piece is expected to be auctioned for $20,000 to $30,000.
The ornate gold necklace is dated to the Hellenistic Period, a time, Solomon explained, when Greek culture became “very opulent,” previous metals were greatly valued and jewelry as a whole was “at its height.”
Although she couldn’t pinpoint exactly “how much of a day’s work” it would have cost to make a piece from this collection — or how expensive the jewelry was at the time of their origin — she doesn’t believe it was strictly reserved for society’s elite or the “royal class.”
“I think there were a range of people who wore this,” Solomon said.
“I would imagine that gold and the time it takes to make this would make it more expensive, so the simpler things that don’t have the beading and that don’t have the precious amethyst or the gold — that might have been stone — would be less valuable than not.”
But the most striking part of the collection is not only the price tag. The pieces are, for the most part, completely wearable despite their age — Solomon calls the jewelry “wearable art.”
Some, however, have been or can be modified if they are not immediately wearable.
For instance, a jeweler can put a lengthener on a necklace if it is too short, or bracelets can be made into earrings. The amethyst necklace, for example, has been restrung and a modern clasp has been attached, “which is the nice balance of how you can wear ancient jewelry,” Solomon added.
As for the almost 24-karat gold pieces — which are nearly pure gold — she warned that they are incredibly soft, so it’s not ideal for daily use. Today, gold is typically sold at a lower karat because it has been mixed with other metals to make it sturdier, she explained.
When donning ancient pieces, then, she advised wearing the pieces on “a special occasion,” like a gala or dinner with friends, “rather than doing the dishes.”
But not all pieces being auctioned are jewelry — there is one standout object that has proven to be a head-scratcher.
A palm-sized icon of Zeus — with modern gemstones that have been added in the years since its creation — is an “anomaly.”
“Jewelry is more straightforward,” Solomon said. “It was either worn in life or death.”
The golden figurine, however, has an attachment on the back and underside, which is curved, rendering the piece unable to sit flat.
While they have “ideas” on how it might have been worn or used, they aren’t certain — and they might never know.
“Perhaps was it worn as part of a diadem? Was it attached to a personal devotional altar in someone’s house?” Solomon mused, adding that the next owner will have to decide how to display or use it.
“But sometimes, they’re just quirky objects like this that you have to appreciate for the beauty.”
