Greek Phaistos Disc Earring with Vergina Sun
These symbolic earrings handmade in Greece feature two symbolic emblems in one pair. The top pendant represents the Phaistos disc from the Minoan Palace on the Greek island of Crete. It is dated to the middle or late Minoan Bronze Age, around 1700BC and depicts 242 symbols stamped in a spiral pattern. To this day it is one of archeology’s most famous mysteries. The lower pendant is an emblem of the Vergina Sun. It is a distinct solar symbol appearing in ancient Greek art from the period between the 6th and 2nd centuries BC. The Vergina Sun has sixteen triangular rays.
The Phaistos disc is .50" / 13mm. Choose with the Vergina Sun 12mm or 14mm.
They hang 1 3/4” /4.5cm from the ear.
You can choose to purchase them in 24K Gold Vermeil or .925 Sterling Silver.
Gold vermeil is .925 sterling silver plated with 24K gold.
Made in Greece by Rosana
About the Phaistos Disc:
The Phaistos disc is a fired clay disk, probably of Minoan origin, measuring some 16cm in diameter and impressed on both sides with 242 symbols set in a spiral arrangement.
It was discovered in the ancient city of Phaistos on the Greek island of Crete, dating to around 1700BC. The symbols are unlike any signs in any writing system and by some, considered the earliest typewritten work and possibly a representation of the Minoan language during the time. The 45 different symbols on the disk are pictograms and seem to have been individually stamped and the disk then fired. Clues that it is of native Minoan origin include the presence of popular Minoan artistic motifs such as dolphins, cattle, lilies and crocuses. Other symbols include human figures, a helmet and shield, an arrow, a boat, cats, fish and more.
There has yet to be a definite deciphering of the code, although theories include an ancient prayer sheet, an astronomical document, a description of the mythical labyrinth, or a solar calendar. Some even speculate if it could be a lost language from Atlantis. Its purpose and meaning remain a mystery, making it one of the most famous enigmas of archaeology. This unique object is now on display at the archaeological museum of Heraklion.
About The Vergina Sun (in Greece the 'Ilios of Vergina’) :
The name "Vergina Sun” refers to an archaeological find of 1977 near the small town of Vergina in northern Greece. It is also known as the "Argead Star" used for the Sun as the royal symbol of the Argead dynasty of Macedon. There it was depicted on a golden larnax (coffin) found in a 4th-century BC royal tomb belonging to either Phillip II or Phillip III of Macedon, the father or brother in law of Alexander the Great. After the unification of the Greek nation under Alexander the Great, the Sun of Vergina became the symbol for the national formation of Greece. It is most likely a solar symbol, being found in temple art depicting the sun god Helios.
Helios, the Greek sun god has most often been portrayed as a mighty charioteer, driving his flaming chariot with winged horses from east to west across the sky each day. Because Helios was in the sky all day looking down on the earth, people assumed he saw and heard everything that transpired; thus, both gods and humans called on him as a witness to important events. Helios was usually depicted as a beardless and very handsome man, crowned with a golden aureole, which accented his role as the Sun God.