During The Roman Empire jewellery became quickly a fundamental and essential social display of wealth. Following the spread of the Roman Empire, Roman jewellery became more and more elaborate in the designs and in the materials used. Semi-precious gemstones, such as garnet, were used to enrich and embellish earrings, rings and necklaces. In Ancient Greek and Roman mythology, Hades gave pomegranate seeds to his lover Persephone, as a token of safety, while she was leaving the underworld to join her mother Demeter in the human world. The semi-precious stone garnet, recalling the colour and the shape of the pomegranate seed, became a typical gift exchanged between separated lovers.
To find out more about the gemstones used in Roman jewellery please see our relevant blog post: The History and Mythology of Gemstones in Ancient Jewellery.
