Item number: G28

Year: circa AD 800-1100

Material: Gold

Size: 15.6 x 14 mm

Weight: 6.22 g

Provenance: Spink 2026

This is a gold earring originating from the Srivijaya Empire of Sumatra.

One side of the earring features a portrait adorned with a conical high crown (Kiritamukuta), consistent with the traditional iconographic depiction of Vishnu in Indian art. The hoop is discontinuous on one side near the portrait, presumably to facilitate size adjustment. This gold earring bears a strong resemblance to a collection of artefacts formerly belonging to Prince Mangkunegara VII; however, the precise details warrant further investigation. Mangkunegara VII was the ruler of the Mangkunegaran principality in present-day Central Java, Indonesia, and reigned from AD 1916 to 1944.

The Srivijaya Empire was a once-prosperous maritime thalassocracy that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries AD in present-day Indonesia. The origins of this empire can be traced to the island of Sumatra, although the exact date of its foundation remains difficult to ascertain; records indicate that Srivijaya had already established itself by approximately AD 670. Owing to its highly advantageous geographical position, which commanded the Strait of Malacca, the empire managed to dominate international maritime trade routes, thereby evolving into a vital hub for commerce between East and West. Concurrently, the Srivijaya Empire was a devout proponent of Mahayana Buddhism, rendering it a major religious centre in the region. Within this pious milieu, the empire developed a distinctive corpus of Buddhist art that amalgamated diverse cultural elements, exhibiting a unique aesthetic style.

By around the 11th century AD, Srivijaya had expanded its dominion across the greater part of Java, establishing its hegemony there. However, the empire subsequently confronted external threats from the Chola Dynasty of Southern India, which instigated a gradual decline in its power. By the late 12th century AD, Srivijaya’s authority had substantially diminished, and the empire was ultimately annexed by the Majapahit Empire at the close of the 14th century AD.

In numerous ancient travelogues, the island of Java was frequently extolled as the ‘Island of Gold’. Nevertheless, geological and archaeological research has demonstrated that Java itself lacked abundant gold deposits. The historical accounts from that era were evidently conflated with the core hinterland of Srivijaya in Sumatra, which was highly prolific in gold production; the gold found in Java was, in fact, predominantly imported from that region. Due to its strategic control over the Strait of Malacca, Srivijaya sat at the nexus of several monetary traditions. With the flourishing of commerce, the empire became heavily reliant on precious metals such as gold and silver as weighed currency. Consequently, 11th-century texts contain the earliest historical records of ‘money changers’ in Southeast Asia. By the 14th century AD, Northern Sumatra (specifically Samudera Pasai) progressed further to mint the earliest Islamic gold coins (dinar) in Southeast Asia.

物件編號: G28

年代: 公元約 800-1100 年

材質: 黃金

尺寸: 15.6 x 14 mm

重量: 6.22 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2026

這是一枚金耳環，出自蘇門達臘三佛齊帝國。

耳環的一面為頭像，配戴圓錐狀的高冠(Kiritamukuta)，符合傳統印度圖像學中毗濕奴的裝扮。耳環在接近頭像的其中一側有中斷，可能是為了方便調節大小。該金耳環與芒庫內加拉七世親王的一批藏品相當類似，但詳情待考。芒庫內加拉七世是今日印尼中爪哇省芒庫內加拉領地的統治者，執政於公元1916至1944年間。

三佛齊帝國，又稱室利佛逝，是一個曾經繁榮興盛的海上貿易帝國，存在於公元7至13世紀間，位於今日印尼地區。該帝國的起源可以追溯至蘇門答臘島，然其確切建國時間難以確定。據記載，早在公元670年左右，三佛齊帝國已經建立起來。 

這個帝國由於位於地理位置優越，控制了馬六甲海峽，因此得以主導國際海上貿易路線，成為東西方貿易的重要中心。同時，三佛齊帝國也是大乘佛教的信奉者，成為該地區的宗教中心。在這一宗教氛圍下，帝國發展出了獨具特色的佛教藝術，融合了多種文化元素，展現出獨特的藝術風格。 

到了公元11世紀左右，三佛齊帝國擴張至爪哇島的大部分地區，成為該地的統治者。然而，帝國後來面臨來自印度朱羅王朝的威脅，這使得其勢力逐漸衰退。到了公元12世紀末期，三佛齊帝國的勢力已經大幅衰弱。最終於公元14世紀末遭到滿者伯夷帝國併吞。 

在許多古代旅行報告中，爪哇島常被讚美為黃金之島，但地質與考古研究證實，爪哇本地並無豐富金礦，當年的紀錄顯然是與盛產黃金的三佛齊(蘇門答臘)核心腹地相互混淆，爪哇的黃金實際上多由該地區進口。三佛齊由於扼守馬六甲海峽，位於數個貨幣傳統之間，隨著商貿的發展，高度依賴金、銀等貴金屬作為稱量貨幣。十一世紀的文獻中，便出現了東南亞地區最早關於「貨幣兌換商」的歷史記載。到了十四世紀，北蘇門答臘(如蘇木都剌-巴賽)更進一步鑄造出東南亞最早的伊斯蘭金幣(Dinar)。