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Pendant with clasped hands
Gold, enamel, diamonds and pearls; 10 x 6 cm, anonymous (German), c. 1580–1600
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
 

An example of late Renaissance jewellery, its intricate openwork structure features scrolling foliage, birds, and flowers in coloured enamel, framing a central square diamond surrounded by smaller diamonds. Symbolic details include clasped hands, signifying union or fidelity, which are set with diamonds, while three large suspended pearls, traditionally associated with purity, add a sense of weight and grandeur, making it both a devotional and courtly object of great magnificence.