Pendant with Near Eastern Goddess (Astarte?)

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Pendant with Near Eastern Goddess (Astarte?)

Place of OriginPossibly Syria

DateLate 16th - 13th century BCE (or modern)

DimensionsPreserved 7/8 x 1 1/4 x 9/16 in. (2.2 x 3.2 x 1.5 cm)

MediumMolded semitranslucent dark blue glass.

ClassificationJewelry

Credit LineGift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1923.214

Not on View

Collections

Glass

Published ReferencesBarag, Dan P., "Mesopotamian Core-Formed Glass Vessels (1500-500 B.C.)," in A. Leo Oppenheim, Robert H. Brill, Dan P. Barag, and Axel von Saldern, Glass and Glassmaking in Ancient Mesopotamia, Corning, N.Y., 1970, pp. 188-189 and 199.

Grose, David F., Early Ancient Glass: Core-Formed, Rod-Formed, and Cast Vessels and Objects from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Roman Empire, 1600 B.C. to A.D. 50, Hudson Hills Press in Association with the Toledo Museum of Art, New York, 1989, cat. no. 3, p. 59, repr. (col.) p. 39, drawing, p. 397.

Label TextThis fragmentary glass pendant, dating to around 1500 B.C., belongs to a small group of early goddess pendants (1923.195, 1923.214, 1923.218) that are among the oldest glass objects in the Museum’s collection. It originally depicted a standing female figure, possibly Ishtar (Astarte), associated with fertility and protection. The preserved portion shows a three-quarter relief of a woman holding her breasts, a common fertility gesture in ancient Near Eastern art. These pendants have been found across Egypt, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, Cyprus, and Mycenaean Greece, particularly at Megiddo, Lachish, and Beth Shean, often in temple precincts, suggesting a votive function. Though linked to Ishtar (Astarte), their lack of clear divine attributes suggests a broader symbolic role. Cast in an open, one-piece mold, this pendant is semitranslucent dark blue with long vertical plaits, a broad necklace, and a transverse threadhole drilled from both sides. The underside is smooth and slightly convex, causing it to wobble when placed on a flat surface. Though some scholars question its authenticity, microscopic examination confirms pitting, iridescence, and inclusions consistent with ancient glass.