Art And Empire: Treasures From Assyria In The British Museum Editorial Photo

Lady Layard`s jewellery. Mesopotamian. Various dates between about 2200 and 350 BC. This necklace, bracelet and two earrings belonged to Lady Enid Layard, the wife of one of the first excavators of ancient Assyria, Henry Layard. Image and all text reproduced courtesy of the British Museum.“Between 1845 and 1851, Layard excavated the remains of the ancient Assyrian capitals of Nimrud and Nineveh and revealed the reliefs that decorated the royal palaces. These and other objects recovered from Mesopotamia astonished Europe and Layard`s account of his discoveries became a best-seller. In 1851 he retired from excavation to take up a life in politics. In March 1869, at the age of fifty-two, he married Enid, the daughter of his cousin. As a wedding present, Layard had a number of seals which he had acquired during his travels made up into jewellery in Victorian gold settings.“Enid later wrote in her diary that, when they dined with Queen Victoria in 1873, it was `much admired`.