STUNNING BYZANTINE GOLD CHAIN WITH A CROSS PENDANT WITH EMERALD, GARNETS AND INSCRIBED AGATE INLAY Ca. AD 500 - 700. A cross-shaped gold pendant centred on a circular plaque set with a green emerald in a raised bezel surrounded by a beaded outer border. Four drop-shaped garnets are symmetrically placed along the diagonals. From the central plaque extend four arms forming the shape of a cross, each terminating in a circular finial containing an agate inlay. Each inlay is inscribed with a single letter: ‘I’, ‘C’, ‘X’, and ‘C’ - together forming the Christogram IC XC, an abbreviation for 'Jesus Christ' in Greek (ΙΗΣΟΥΣ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ). The pendant is attached to a gold chain interspersed with four cylindrical green beads at equal intervals. Reviewed by Sami Fortune, an ancient jewellery specialist. For similar see: J. Spier, Byzantium and the West: Jewelry in the First Millennium, 14a (necklace). Size: 255mm x 43mm; Weight: 29g Provenance: Private UK collection; London art market; formerly in a Belgian private collection of F. Artuner, Brussels 1980s. This item has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database and comes with a confirmation letter.