Goa Stone and Case in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, February 2020

Goa Stone and Gold Case
late 17th–early 18th century


Object Details

Title: Goa Stone and Gold Case

Date: late 17th–early 18th century

Geography: Probably made in India, Goa

Medium: Container: gold; pierced, repoussé, with cast legs and finials
Goa stone: compound of organic and inorganic materials

Dimensions: Goa stone: Diam. 1 3/16 in. (3 cm)
container: H. 2 5/8 in. (6.7 cm)
Diam. 5 11/16 in. (14.4 cm)

Classification: Metal

Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 2004

Accession Number: 2004.244a–d


Bezoar stones—gallstones naturally formed in the intestines of ruminant mammals—came to Europe through trade along the Silk Road and with the East and West Indies in the sixteenth century. Believed to counteract poisons, they quickly became valued Kunstkammer items. This Goa stone is an artificial bezoar, likely composed of a paste of bezoar, clay, silt, crushed shell, amber, musk, resin, narwhal tusk, and crushed gemstones. Named for the region in India where they were manufactured by Jesuits, Goa stones were considered just as effective as their natural counterparts.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/454738