Jewellery has been commonly recovered in Pompeii. Archaeologists have found some skeletons and plaster casts clutching pieces of jewellery as if they were their most precious possessions. Jewellery looks like it was very important to the people of Pompeii as it was worth a large amount of money. Jewellery was a status item in Pompeii. The more you had, the higher status you had within the community.
Above: A gold slave bracelet with the slave's master's name engraved on the inside.
Less than one in ten woman were found wearing or clutching jewellery. This suggests that many woman weren't wealthy enough to have jewellery. However, many slave girls were found to be wearing gold snake bracelets with the words "Dominus ancillae suae" on the inside face. This means from the master (dominus) to his slave girl (ancilla). Woman often wore less jewellery due to the fact that many were slaves. The gold snake bracelet was the only jewellery slaves wore. We have evidence of this from the slaves that have been recovered.
The jewellery worn in Ancient Pompeii was predominantly gold with a few gemstones and pearls. Nowadays, we wear silver and gold with some gemstones and pearls.
As you can see, the jewellery that was worn in Ancient Pompeii is quite similar to the jewellery that we wear nowadays.
Above: A gold slave bracelet with the slave's master's name engraved on the inside.
Less than one in ten woman were found wearing or clutching jewellery. This suggests that many woman weren't wealthy enough to have jewellery. However, many slave girls were found to be wearing gold snake bracelets with the words "Dominus ancillae suae" on the inside face. This means from the master (dominus) to his slave girl (ancilla). Woman often wore less jewellery due to the fact that many were slaves. The gold snake bracelet was the only jewellery slaves wore. We have evidence of this from the slaves that have been recovered.
The jewellery worn in Ancient Pompeii was predominantly gold with a few gemstones and pearls. Nowadays, we wear silver and gold with some gemstones and pearls.
As you can see, the jewellery that was worn in Ancient Pompeii is quite similar to the jewellery that we wear nowadays.