Watch List notes:

NGUYEN DYNASTY (ANNAM): gilt religious amulet (11.87g), Sylvester-, 49 x 77mm, oval amulet roughly in the shape of a bôi medal, cuu trung thanh mau kham tu ("Bestowed by the Holy Mother Most High", i.e., Dao Mau), flanked by two phoenixes flying among auspicious clouds & facing a radiant sphere, holed at top & bottom, attached with red cord & tassels, AU, ex John Sylvester Jr. Collection. Bôi, meaning "pendant", was an oval-shaped medal awarded to women of merit. The inscriptions on this particular example, likely a private issue, point to an object of religious significance, namely the traditional worship of Dao Mau, the supreme Mother Goddess in the Tu Phu religion ("Four Palaces"). The oval shape and phoenix motif (an animal associated with women across East Asia) suggests it was worn by women.

Estimate: 300-400 USD