Torque (Grivna)
Khokhlach Burial Mound, near Novocherkassk
1st century AD
Gold, turquoise, coral, glass
Diam 17.8 cm, h 6.3 cm
The torque consists of two hinged parts made of curved wires soldered together (one part of four wires, the other of three). Top and bottom, the front is decorated with a repeating frieze, which shows one monster attacking another. The muscles of the legs and shoulders and the ears of these fabulous monsters are picked out with inlays of turquoise or coral; the deep eyes are inlaid with glass. The friezes have been cast in single-piece moulds and subsequently chased.
This torque is a typical example of the Sarmatian Animal Style.
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