NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC HISTORY 13on crowns, and on hair combs. Pearls
were sewn onto dresses and even onto
the straps of their sandals. Pliny penned
his admonishment that pearls had sur-
passed mere adornment: “It is not suf-
ficient for them to wear pearls, but they
must trample and walk over them...
the women wore pearls even in the still
hours of the night, so that in their sleep
they might be conscious of possessing
the beautiful gems.”
Roman philosopher Seneca echoed
Pliny’s criticism of such pretension when
describing the new earring style: “[T]he
lobes of our ladies have attained a special
capacity for supporting a great number.
Two pearls alongside of each other, with
a third suspended above, now form a sin-
gle earring! The crazy fools seem to think
that their husbands are not sufficiently
tormented unless they wear the value of
an inheritance in each ear!” Indeed, ear-
rings of this period were often so largeand heavy that the purpose of a female
hairdresser, known as an auricula ornatrix,
was to treat earlobes injured or infected by
the earrings. Even the statues of the time
reflected the Romans’ fondness for be-
jeweled earlobes. The “Venus de’ Medici,”
a sculpture from the first century B.C. of
Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, has
pierced ears.
Pearls became a symbol of imperial pow-
er and were lavishly displayed on bed cov-
ers, couches, and crowns. A pearl-setter
was among the many permanent staff
who worked for Emperor Augustus, an
indication of the jewel’s importance in
the ruler’s household.
The pearl featured prominently in
accounts of Emperors Caligula and Ne-
ro, both infamous for their extraordi-
nary excesses. Caligula is said to have
not only bestowed the rank of consul
upon his favorite horse but also dec-
orated Incitatus with a pearl necklace.Echoing the tale told of Cleopatra, Caligu-
la’s libations were even said to include the
prized gem, as he drank “pearls of great
price dissolved in vinegar.” Nero, with
his pearl-encrusted scepter and throne,
adorned the actors in his theater with
similarly decorated masks and scepters
for his viewing pleasure.
Historian Suetonius wrote that Vitel-
lius, a first-century Roman general (and
later one of the short-lived successors of
Nero), financed an entire military cam-
paign by selling just one of his mother’s
pearl earrings. A luxury known to only
a few, pearls occupied the “very highest
position among valuables.” This jewel
of the sea—matching Pliny’s descrip-
tion of Caligula’s pearl-bedecked third
wife, Lollia Paulina—“glittered and
shone like the sun” at the height of the
Roman Empire.—Lucía Avial-ChicharroA Plethora of Pearls
ROMAN JEWELERS grew skilled at creating different combinations
of pearls to appeal to their customers, from simple settings of
a single pearl to numerous gems joined together in clusters.gold ringis set with a single pearl,
from Oplontis near Pompeii. National
Archaeological Museum, Naples, Italybracelet of intricate goldwork
shows off several inset pearls.
National Archaeological Museum,
Naples, ItalyPHOTOS:
FOGLIA/SCALA, FLORENCE, EXCEPT PEARL CLUSTER
R: DEA/ALBUM
pearls and precious
stones are linked on a
necklace from Pompeii.
National Archaeological
Museum, Naples, Italypearl cluster and
gold earrings from
Pompeii. National
Archaeological
Museum, Naples,
ItalyItaly