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Asian Bezoar Stone

Dutch amulet consisting of an organic concretion found inside an Asian mammal, mounted inside a Dutch-made gold filigree holder, and hung from a gold loop-in-loop chain. Date: ca. 1600-1650 CE, length including chain 11,0 cm.

Stories

  • Yearning for the Bezoar-Stone

    story by Meghan Parker.

    At first glance one might wonder why is what appears to be an oak gall or a ball of red clay so elegantly enclosed in such rich gold? Examine this object more closely, and its peculiar organic nature becomes more apparent. This strange reddish sphere was once worth more than ten times the weight of the gold encircling it.

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