Art History Accessories

When I think about the upcoming school year and the prospect of going back to the classroom, I get excited at the thought of getting to wear some of my jewelry again. I like to pair my outfits and accessories with the topic that I am going to discuss with students, although the references are small and probably go unnoticed. Here are some of my art history accessories:

Pendant of a rosette from the Ishtar Gate. I got this at the Pergamon Museum gift shop.

For early Egyptian lectures, I wear a scarab with a pendant that came nestled within the Giza Pyramids Conqueror Challenge medal.

The back of the pendant has hieroglyphs which translate to say "Well done."

For later Egyptian lectures, I wear this necklace when I teach about King Tut's funerary mask and/or lapis lazuli.

This one I often wear when I teach about Minoan art (it has a nod to nature and Minoan metalwork/filagree), but it also works well to teach about other groups that are inspired by nature (the PRB and the Arts & Crafts, for example).

I inherited this necklace from Grandma Judy this past summer. She lived in Athens for a short time on a mission, and I think that I'll wear this drachma when I teach about early Greek art.

I usually wear this Athena (owl) pendant when I teach about the Parthenon and Athens. I got this necklace in Athens when I was on a study abroad as an undergrad.

For Byzantine lectures, I wear this pendant of Salus Populi Romani (Health of the Roman People). It is a copy of a Byzantine icon located at the Borghese chapel in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. I got this as a souvenir when I was in Rome as an undergrad.

I wear this pink rose when I teach about Rococo art. I bought this at a gift shop at Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam (outside Berlin).

My sister E gave me this ring when she went to Turkey on a trip. I like to wear a nod to Iznik tiles when I teach about pottery or ceramics.

This pendant looks like a feather to me, so I wear it when I teach about featherwork and/or the tapirage technique in indigenous art from the Americas.

The oval shape of this pendant reminds a little bit of Victorian brooches, so I wear this when I teach about the 19th century.