British Museum
A visit to the British Museum always raises the important question: who had the best jewellery? Was it the Romans:
Merovingian betrothal rings have a lot of charm:
The Egyptians are strong contenders, with a necklace decorated with gold flies:
18th-century England had a good line in spooky mourning jewellery:
Although they might be trumped by 16th-century Italians, who were happy to wear a rock crystal engraving of Tityus having his liver eaten by birds:
The 'Ram in a thicket' from the Death Pit of Ur might not strictly qualify as jewellery, but it does have gold genitals, copper ears and a fleece made of lapis lazuli. Also nice knees:
It's good to discover new ways of decorating yourself, such as this Etruscan ear cover:
But when it comes down to it, you can't beat a Viking hoard:
