Notes on a Possible Minoan Forgery

The well-known gem of lapis lacedaemonius , generally described as from Kydonia (i.e. the province of Crete in which lies the town of Khania), and now in the Benaki Museum in Athens, has been frequently quoted as a basis for, or in support of theories on, Minoan–Mycenaean religious belief and practice. In this note it is intended to set out grounds for doubting the genuineness of the gem. Its shape and material establish a prima facie case for authenticity. The rather large ( c. 25 millimetre diameter) lentoids, slightly elliptical in shape and pierced, generally down the shorter axis, occur commonly in lapis lacedaemonius , carnelian and agate in the L.M. I–II period. Moreover the material does not seem to have been used by forgers, perhaps because it is harder to acquire than, for example, carnelian or agate. However these factors seem out-weighed on closer inspection, when all grounds for doubting the stone's genuineness are considered.