Silver-mounted Amber Heart-shaped Pendant. Germany, 17th Century.

Silver-Mounted Amber Heart-Shaped Pendant Carved with Cross and Anchor

Germany, 17th century

Measurements
• 4.2 × 3.3 × 0.9 cm
• Weight: 5.4 grams

This devotional or talismanic pendant is carved from a single piece of translucent reddish-brown Baltic amber into a stylised heart form, each face carved with a Christian symbol. On one side appears a Latin cross surmounting a broad anchor, a motif traditionally emblematic of faith and hope. The reverse bears a plain Latin cross. The carvings are executed in low relief, the surfaces smoothed and polished to a soft lustre. The amber is set within a closed silver mount, its edge decorated with a dog’s-tooth and twisted rope border, and fitted with an integral suspension loop.

Amber, prized in early modern Europe for its supposed apotropaic and medicinal qualities, was frequently worked into amulets, devotional pendants, and rosary beads. The combination of amber with Christian iconography in this example would have reinforced its perceived protective powers, serving both as a public display of piety and as a personal talisman. The cross and anchor together recall the biblical injunction in Hebrews 6:19, “Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul,” and the trio of theological virtues—faith, hope, and charity.