Neck Adornments
There are no descriptions of necklaces in Tanah, but the Song of Songs contains a poetic metaphor: “The curves of your hips are like a necklace” (see 7.2, p. 678). It is possible that neck jewelry was not very popular. Aside from necklaces, neck jewelry includes beads, torques, and pectorals. As any other item of jewelry, the function of these ornaments was both magical and practical. For instance, torques -- metal plates or hoops with zoomorphic ends – held cloaks in place and protected against battle wounds; thus, a torque found in the Tolstoy grave has jagged edges from a hatchet (see Kiev Museum of Antiquities, Kievsky musei istoricheskih  drevnostei, ill, 37, 38). In Central Asia, torques served as military signs of distinction.

Pectorals, another type of neck ornaments, consist of chains with a central inset or a mounting. Pectorals were frequently found on members of aristocracy or deity (.(Pugachenkova G. Art of Bactria, Iskusstvo Bactrii…p.189).


Neck adornments were mostly worn by members of high social standing; perhaps this is the reason that the museum collection does not have a lot of samples of neck ornaments. 

Again, we can see that, just like the rings and earrings discussed in the previous chapters, neck ornaments are made under the influence of the following artistic and cultural movements: early Eastern, ancient Egyptian, and Hellenistic-Roman.

Some necklaces are similar to the gold jewelry of ancient Columbia, where residents of Sinu were famous for their skills in the art of jewelry, where temples contained gold idols, and the same idols (of a smaller scale) were used in neck jewelry (See L. Gomez, Columbian Gold, cat. 24467, 4243). Since only fragments from the Hecht collection’s necklace survived, we can only suggest that its original shape was a metal “collar,” similar to cat #5859 and 4108 (Gomez, cat.24467).

Necklaces consisted of stylized images of birds and schematic, flat and angular human figures (Columbian Gold, p. 24).

The first monuments of that region date both to the middle of II century BC and VII BC Similar items are among the finds from Beth Shamash. This is another proof of analogies of forms and sorts of articles on different continents. Using the analogy method, it is possible to reconstruct lost types of jewelry based on the depictions of the items on relieves, sculptures, wall-paintings and etc.

Another direction –Early Egyptian – is represented by necklaces found in the anthropoid sarcophagus from Dir-el- Balach. They date to the XIX-XX Dynasty period (XII-X BC) (see “Jewelry from Ancient world”, Jerusalem, 1969).

Necklace, which consists of lotus-seeds shaped pendants, round and cylindrical cornelian beads (20x4 II.C.2e, cornelian 20x4; 2 cylindrical beads, cornelian 2x26) and horn-shaped gold pendants Ix16. Egyptians believed that lotus was a Solar sign, since the lotus flower rises and disappears with the Sun. The Nile’s Delta is shaped like a lotus. In India, lotus was a symbol of the Sun. Cornelian was known as stimulating, hot, active, energetic, expansive, passionate, masculine, color of valor, and symbol of strength, power, bravery, fire, flame, and heat.

The central pendant is a stylized depiction of a signet ring. The same pendant is found in the middle of the necklace N-1458(B). See analogies in Mesopotamia, Mari, 2 mill, ill.43, J-C, Margueron, London, 1965).

Some necklaces shows Hellenistic-Roman influence. Gold, emeralds.  Like the one was found in the burial site of southern Bethlehem, II century. 13 gold pendants, 12 emerald pendants. The necklace has a wide circle of analogies: Hoffman H., Museum F. Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg; Coche E. de la Ferte Antique Jewelry, Bernm 1962;Basserman E. Iordan, Dev Schmuck, Leipzig, 1909,fig.45;48 2-3 CE; Boglia L.Cat. delle Orefiore.Mus.Naz.Napoli, Roma, 1941, pl.XXXIII:2; XXXIV:3;

Goldschmuck der Romerzeit by Barbara Deppert-Lippitz, Mainz, 1984, p.10; Objects of Adornments 2-3 CE, N.Y. 1984). Emerald is a precious stone that belongs to the A group, I class, which is the highest grade, still invaluable to this day. It has older names - “zamortod” (Sanskrit), “smargados” (Greek), and “izumrud” (Persian). The latter appeared in the XVI century. In the early times, emeralds were brought from the Arabian Desert. The necklace could belong to a member of a royal family. Emerald is a May stone that is supposed to bring love and success. It is a stone of Mercury, god and protector of trade and eloquence. The green color of the stone is a symbol of spring, fertility, youth, freshness, hope, memory. Green emeralds became fashionable after bloody wars; the price of emeralds on the world market rose many times. The shape of the stone and its weight allow us to conclude that the necklace was worn by a man, since women’s necklaces tend to be more fragile and sophisticated.