Die Goldfunde aus dem Artemision von Ephesos

The gold objects derive from the excavations 1965 till 1994 in the Artemision of Ephesus by the Austrian Archaeological Institute. Most of the objects occurred in strata located under the Archaic dipteros and may thus be placed in the second half of the seventh or the first half of the sixth century BC. They were deposited in the sanctuary as votive gifts. The vast majority are dress ornaments and jewellery, either worn directly on the body or sewn onto clothing such as appliqués or pieces of sheet gold decorated with a variety of motives, spherical and drop-shaped pendants and beads (some of which look like fruit), pins with floral heads, fibulae (predominantly of Phrygian `Asia Minor` type), brooches in the shape of birds of prey and boat-shaped earrings with, in some cases, elaborate decoration. There are also some figurines which are definitely worth mentioning such as anthropomorphic and zoomorphic statuettes. Within the Archaic period, the Artemision is unique regarding the large number and variety of gold jewellery: No other sanctuary from this period has yielded a similar wealth of gold objects. By examining most of the gold objects from the English excavations in the sanctuary (1904/05) the multitude and variety of the gold jewellery could be extended.