Ethiopian Coptic Cross Amulet

Dotted outlines and tiny starbursts decorate arms that spread like a ship's sail.

This coptic cross amulet is Ethiopian Orthodox, from Ethiopia, East Africa, and dates to the 19th or early 20th century. It is coin silver & fine silver. Ethiopian Orthodox Christians have long worn crosses in many openwork patterns, and the designs vary by region, workshop and the silversmith who made them. Wide arms flare outward from a narrow center, edged with fine dotted lines. Small circular rosettes of punched dots sit near the tips of the arms. The surface is dark and mellow, with a ribbed loop above. It is 1.75 inches long and 2.25 high.

Pretty stippling, stitched one dot at a time.