Diadem, ca. 1200-800 BC
Helen M. Danforth Acquisition Fund

This beautiful diadem was most likely worn by a woman of high rank. Magnificent bronze necklaces, belts and diadems such as this rare and well-preserved example belonged to persons of wealth and prominent social status in the Late Bronze Age, ca. 1200-800 BC. Weapons and jewelry accompanied the deceased and were found in great quantity in excavated graves at the site of Hallstatt in Austria, which gives its name to the culture that produced this diadem.

The RISD diadem is dramatically adorned with four large bronze spirals placed side by side. Known from Neolithic — and even earlier — times, the spiral motif enjoyed its greatest popularity in the Bronze Age. In the hands of this diadem’s maker, the spiral is transformed from a simple geometric decorative motif into a sculptural form of great artistic significance.

Originally this diadem would have looked as though it were made of bright, shiny gold: the green patina is the result of its having been buried for centuries.

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