gems, ancient jewelry, ancient gems, glyptic, engraved gems, Egyptian, Roman, Greek, Ptolemaic

This study focuses on the gold jewellery made and worn in Egypt during the millennium between Alexander the Great’s invasion and the Arab conquest, largely excluding funerary jewellery and ornaments in the traditional older Egyptian styles. It draws on a broad spectrum of evidence—especially the style, composition, and construction of extant jewellery, visual depictions such as funerary portraits, and numerous literary references from papyri as well as Classical and early Christian sources. Egypt offers more abundant and detailed material from this period than any other ancient or medieval society, enabling a comprehensive investigation of jewellery within a single cultural context. The chapters address a brief historical overview; literary evidence from papyri and other sources; the origin, distribution, composition, and valuation of gold; the sourcing and usage of mineral and organic gem materials; the economic and social structure of the goldsmiths’ trade; and specific jewellery types—their development, production, and meaning. The discussion of jewellery forms is divided into four chapters on rings; earrings; necklets and pendants; and bracelets and armlets. These nine chapters are followed by an extensive bibliography and a list of the 511 illustrations.