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Jewellery History
Since the beginning of time, humans have made use of creating
ornamental jewelry for their personal adornment. Traditionally,
ancient jewelry displays distinctive character, presents intense
artistic images, and carries rich cultural assets through plasticity
and expression. However, historically many jewelry items were
first created as a means of fastening ones clothing, the display of
wealth and status in society as well as for creating storage units
for coins and other trinkets in jewelry boxes. It can be seen that
various cultures have their own cherished wealthy possessions of
precious metals and gemstones. Long ago, wedding dowries
included such treasures as the family jewels for a daughter about
to be married.
Stylistic evolution from the Early Oriental to Hellenistic-Romanian
trends served as a basis for the stylistic changes in the art of
jewelry making. Aside from its external beauty properties, every
jewellery object has a second, internal life triggered by its
semantic significance and perceived through one's mind, intuition
or aesthetic sense.
Every artifact serves as a symbol of information. Apotropeic
emblems, borrowed from everyday life, epos, or myths, and used in
the art of jewelry making, carried a certain magical connotation.
Some of the most well-known jewelry makers were the ancient
Egyptians, who began incorporating gold into their jewelry, which
was one of their most favorite metals to work with, approximately
3,000 to 5,000 years ago.
Meanwhile, the ancient Romans added their own special flair of
creative artistry into jewelry making styles, such as the ever
popular brooch. However, their pinning creation was born of the
need for securely fastening their clothing. The ancient Romans
were very fond of imported goods and made beautiful use of such
gemstones as diamonds, emeralds, sapphires and amber. Although
the majority of Roman men wore one ring upon a finger, however,
there were some who wore more, their women usually wore many
more pieces of jewelry than they. Rings of that time were often
carved of beautiful gemstones, and utilized for sealing documents
with an engraved wax seal, as was customary during the middle
ages by kings and noblemen alike.
Popularity of a particular mythological plot line was connected to
the very zeitgeist of the given time period, since the jewelry maker
lived through it and tended to be deeply involved with the
contemporary events. The art reflected the master's interests in
what was currently happening with the society. Through the
evolution of jewellery items it is possible to trace not only the
historical and cultural situation, but also economical, political and
social sides of ancient civilizations, as well as symbolism and
semantics of the art produced.
The ancient masters employed various techniques, including
casting, granulation, filigree, and inlay, among others. Certain
items of jewelry serve as a testament to the advanced artistic skills
of the jewelers. Among precious and semi-precious stones used by
jewelers in the ancient world the most popular were garnets,
rubies, cornelian stones, pearls and emeralds.
Ancient Bronze Jewellery
Authentic Bronze Roman Rings –
History
Just as today, jewelry was an important part of Roman life and
culture. Jewelry reflected then as now the wealth and status of the
wearer. In the Roman Republic, (before 44 BC), by law only
citizens could wear rings. And a male citizen could only wear one
ring, and that ring was made of iron. In the early empire only
Patricians, (the upper class of citizens), could wear gold rings.
Other citizens and freemen could wear silver or bronze. Slaves
were not allowed to wear rings at all except in some
circumstances, iron. As the empire expanded the laws and customs
regarding jewelry were relaxed. Clothing was dictated by social
class, and changed little for over 1000 years. Consequently jewelry
and hairstyles were the dominant means of expressing a Roman's
social and economic status. In the later empire some people wore
rings on every finger, and even on their toes! The normal everyday
Roman was not this ostentatious.
They wore only one or two rings, usually of bronze. Since Roman
clothing had no pockets, one popular ring was the key ring. Unlike
the modern key ring which holds a group of keys together, a
Roman key ring was a finger ring containing an actual key,
possibly to a strongbox where the family valuables were stored, or
maybe even to the door of the wearer's house. Bronze was popular
because it was much less expensive than other metals, and when
polished it could look almost like gold. There are some Roman
bronze rings that even have a thin plating of gold. Just like their
more expensive counterparts, bronze rings sometimes had a semiprecious stone or polished glass inset into the bezel. Most though
were just inscribed with one of a large variety of symbols. The
Romans were a superstitious people. Many of the symbols were
good luck charms, asking for favors from a particular god, or
protection by another. The Roman military sometimes wore rings
with the insignia of their legion, or in commemoration of a great
victory.
Roman jewellery was made throughout the empire from 27BC,
when Roman styles absorbed Greek culture, until the founding of
Constantinople in AD330, when Byzantine styles gradually took
over. Many towns throughout the empire have produced evidence
for metal working in the forms of hearths, slag and scraps of metal
or crucibles.
Styles and Materials
Romano-British jewellery was made and used in Britain after the
Roman conquest in AD43, using Roman or native styles or a
combination of both. Polychrome jewellery was made using a
technique learnt from the Greeks. This was multicoloured by
reason of being inlaid with gems and glass in rub-over settings
(bringing a collar of gold up over the edges of the stone rather
than using the modern clasp setting).
Opus interrasile is a style of open-work decoration of metal used
by the Etruscans, the Romans from the third century onwards, and
then the Byzantines. It was made by piercing metal to form a fine
fretwork, often creating a filigree-type background with a solid
image left in relief.
Dipped enamelling had been used in Greek jewellery since the
third century BC, and was still practiced in Roman times. This
involved dipping a heated metal core into molten glass then
shaping it, and was mostly used for pendant earrings. Enamelling
in general was very popular in the western provinces.
Precious stones including sapphires, aquamarines, topaz, garnet,
cornelian, occasional uncut diamonds, and pearls were used in
bezel (rub-over) settings for rings, necklaces and bracelets.
Emeralds from Egypt or the Red Sea were also known. Glass, bone
and pottery beads were used too.
British pearls were known to Tacitus (end of the first century) and
were still being sold in the fourth century. Silver, from the Mendip
hills, was mined as a by-product of the lead industry. However, the
silver yield was very low in Britain compared to other lead-mining
areas in Europe.
Sometimes these designs refer to a specific place and on some
occasions they refer to a specific celestial event or a day of the
year when such an event will occur which is quite exciting from an
astronomical or astrological point of view. There are also a few
broken lines that may have formed a "Serpent" figure right behind
the Moon which is exciting because this may reference a certain
time of the year when the Serpent Constellation is seen in the night
sky. The image on this ring is a "Moon" symbol. The image is done
on a curved, 10mm rounded bezel and is a nicely cut image of the
full moon which is the symbol of the Goddess Diana. This symbol
is related to the magic circles that you see on other Roman rings,
but when you see it like this, it depicts the moon. It would be my
guess that the owner of this ring had a name that started with the
first few letters or the whole word LUNA in it.
Depicted on the bezel, is a single Legion Battle Standard. This type
is related to the "Vexillum" but instead of a pendant flag, this type
always had disks or circlets upon it. This example seems to mix
both methods of depicting this design.
ORION'S BELT DESIGN
The belt of the Giant Orion is made up of three stars. Mintaka , the
westernmost star in the belt, comes from the Arabic word for belt.
Alnilam, the center star in the belt, means "a belt of pearls". And
Alnitak, the eastern-most star, means the girdle. All three are at
the same distance from us and, with Rigel, Saiph, and Meissa,
probably formed at about the same time some ten million years
ago from the molecular clouds astronomers have found in Orion.
Animal Designs.
The ancient Romans were very fond of statues and reliefs showing
hunting scenes, including scenes where the hunter was an animal;
they were also interested in statues of exotic animals.
The Roman Eagle
The Roman ensigns had on their top an eagle representing Rome.
These symbols were held high by a special group of soldiers and
during the battles they indicated the location of the commanding
officers and they gave reassurance to the Roman legionaries. The
choice of the eagle as the symbol of command was widespread
among ancient civilizations.
Lions
The lion, the king of the animals, was mainly associated by the
Romans with the myth of Hercules, who was always portrayed
wearing a lion skin. Lions protected the dead in the Roman
sarcophagi . The Romans liked in particular scenes showing the
lion in the act of hunting a deer and some of these reliefs can be
seen on Roman jewellery.
Medieval Jewelry
Authentic Medieval Bronze Rings –
History
An important technique in medieval jewelry was the use of garnet
slices set, like enamel, into metal cells. Examples are garnet-inlaid
buckles and clasps from the 7th-century Sutton Hoo ship burial in
Suffolk (British Museum) and a crown inlaid with garnets and
cabochon (rounded) gems (Real Amería, Madrid), which belonged
to the Visigothic king Recceswinth. The famous Alfred jewel (9th
century, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford) is an example of cloisonné.
Quite different are Celtic gold torques, rigid bands that encircled
the neck or arm of the wearer.
Beginning in the 11th century, brooches continued to be one of the
chief forms of medieval jewelry. They were usually penannular,
such as the 12th-century Eagle brooch (Mainz Museum). Chased
or enameled pendants of a crucifix or other religious emblem and
pendants containing a holy relic were another characteristic
adornment, as were rings. By the 14th and 15th centuries, jewelry
increasingly became an integral part of dress and was worn in the
form of necklaces and girdles, on hairnets, and sewn onto clothes.
Renaissance Jewelry
During the Renaissance (15th century to 17th century), jewelry
became an even more important part of fashionable costume. Rich
velvet and silk robes of both men and women were embroidered
with pearls and sparkling gems. Separate pieces of jewelry
demonstrated the close alliance between the decorative arts and
those of painting, architecture, and sculpture. Renaissance jewelry
is characterized by rich color and by sculptural or architectural
design. Religious subjects were gradually replaced by classical
and naturalistic themes. Typical of the period is the sculptural
pendant in which irregular pearls, enameling, and colored gems
were combined. Also popular were brooches or pendants
containing a miniature portrait. Necklaces, chains, and girdles
continued in fashion. Designs for jewels, some by such famous
painters as Hans Holbein the Younger and Albrecht Dürer, were
printed and circulated throughout Europe, creating an
international style. Among artisans, the best known today is
Benvenuto Cellini, but none of his jewels is believed to have
survived. Notable examples of Renaissance jeweled pendants of the
16th century include the Phoenix jewel (British Museum) and the
Canning jewel (Victoria and Albert Museum, London).
Jewelry in the 17th and 18th Centuries
Jewelry of later periods falls into two main groups: diamond
jewelry, which was usually conservative in design, and jewelry that
reflected changing fashions in clothes and the arts. With the
introduction in the 17th century of new methods of faceting gems
to give them greater brilliance, the diamond became the preferred
stone for precious jewelry, a reference that remains. At the same
time, in the 18th and 19th centuries, industrial development
brought mass production of more popular jewelry in cheaper
materials. In addition to diamond tiaras, rings, and brooches of
naturalistic design, there was less costly jewelry in the
neoclassical style inspired by originals excavated at Pompeii, and
in revivals of Gothic, Renaissance, and Egyptian styles (see
Neoclassical Art and Architecture). The materials utilized, in
addition to gold and semiprecious stones, included base-metal
alloys, paste (for imitation gemstones), steel, and cast iron.
Techniques included mechanical processes for stamping and
cutting out patterns and settings.
In the case of both luxury jewelry and popular jewelry, a
characteristic arrangement was a matched set, or parure. A
woman's parure often included a tiara or ring in addition to the
basic combination of necklace, earrings, and brooch. A man's
parure, in the 18th century, consisted of buttons, shoe buckles,
sword hilt, and the insignia of knightly orders. Many magnificent
parures and other jewels were created for the royal houses of
Europe, which for several hundred years have accumulated
permanent collections of coronation regalia, state and personal
jewelry, and important single stones like the Koh-i-noor and Hope
diamonds. Many of the brilliant crowns have been reset, broken
up, or lost, but a variety of impressive collections remain in the
Tower of London, the Vienna Treasury, and the Kremlin. Jeweled
accessories were also fashionable. These included watchcases,
snuffboxes, seals, and thimble cases.
Animals on Jewellery
In medieval times the representation of animals was rather limited
and linked to religious symbols (flocks of sheep and the symbols of
three of the four Evangelists: an eagle, a bull and a lion). In the
XIVth century Italy gradually became an important actor in
Mediterranean trade and this led to bringing to the richest trading
centers (Florence and Venice) exotic animals which were then
exhibited. During the Renaissance each Italian court had a
serraglio (menagerie) and an aviary. The discovery of Roman
buildings having rooms entirely decorated with paintings and
mosaics showing birds or wild animals had an influence on the
Renaissance palaces
Between 1572 and 1655, a period of great urban development of
Rome, five popes had animals in their coats of arms and this
coincidence enormously increased the number of animal statues
decorating churches and fountains. Antonio Canova, realizing that
most of the statues of lions in Rome were "humanized", spent some
time in Caserta, the Versailles of the King of Naples, studying the
actual features of a couple of lions, kept in the royal menagerie.
History Bronze Byzantine Jewellery
Authentic Ancient Byzantine Rings –
Byzantine jewelry is characterized by the same love of luxury and
precious materials as that of ancient times. Centres of jewellery
production were not only the capitál Constantinople but also
provinces such as Syria, which had a long tradition in this art.
The jewellery-making techniques, such us engraving and
embossing, filigree, granulation, enamelling were virtually the
same as those used in antiquity. One of the distinctive traits of
Byzantine jewellery is the lavish use of precious stones. Pearls
from the Persian Gulf, emeralds from Egypt and India, sapphires
from Ceylon were brought to the Empire to embellish valuable
objects.
Another method of decoration which is of oriental origin and was
frequently used by Byzantine jewellers is niello. Though niello was
known in the Mycenaean period it was subsequently forgotten, to
reappear on Roman objects. the decorative effect is based on the
contrast created between the colour of the ground metal and the
dark motifs. It can be applied to gold, silver and bronze Pierced
and cut-out decoration (opus interrasile), that appears in many
pieces of Byzantine jewellery, also has eastern roots. It is usually
applied on cast plaques: the decoration was first drawn on the
metal and then selected parts were removed with different drills
and saws, creating perforated designs reminiscent of lacework.
Although Byzantine jewellery represents a continuation of the
Roman tradition, its own principles and parameters are evident by
the 4th century, and it swiftly adapted to the new tastes of its
period and space. Rejecting the weight of solid gold, and
preferring instead fine, light gold leaf, it created new forms,
evolved, and was transmuted into a delicate, refined art
embellished with precious and semiprecious stones, surpassing the
use of this decoration already familiar from Roman jewellery.
From the beginning to the end of the Byzantine empire, jewellery
was highly valued by high-ranking officials at the Byzantine court,
whose signet-rings were decorated with ingenious, complicated
monograms, and even more so by wealthy Byzantine ladies, who
never ceased to adore it. A sign of economic prosperity, it
invariably adorns the necks, hair, wrists and expressive fingers of
the female figures depicted in monumental mosaics and other
works of art. The Byzantines' special appreciation and love of
expensive, refined jewellery, attested both by the literary sources
and by art, seems to have been intensified not only by women's
interest in their appearance, but also by men's desire to show off
their wealth.
The Cross
Scarcely any object was as ubiquitous in Byzantine culture as the
cross. As the symbol of Christ's Passion and ultimate victory over
death, the cross is the essential sign of the Christian faith.
Yet, the cult of the cross did not flourish until the fourth century.
Many years later it was decreed that the image of the cross should
not be limited to churches and liturgical objects, but that it should
be found also in jewelry..
Celtic Saxon and Viking Jewellery
History
The history here is about Celtic jewellery , Saxon jewelry , Viking,
Egyptian, other pre-Roman, and other post-medieval jewellery. See
our current selection of Viking jewellery here and our Celtic etc
Silver rings here
Celtic rings - 1300 BC - 100 AD.
In addition to silver and gold, Celtic jewellery is very often found
as a bronze alloy or copper alloy. Copper having a more deep
plum colour than the bronze rings. Celtic jewellery with knots or
Celtic interlace are ornamental patterns primarily were used to
decorate Bible manuscripts, monuments (notably Celtic crosses
and cross slabs) and jewelry. Celtic jewelry knots are complete
loops with no end or beginning. A good Celtic artist will never
leave a loose end on a strand unless it is stylized into a zoomorphic
element or spiral. Pure knots should always be unending.
The Celtic peoples were a series of tribes linked by culture and
language. They were supra national, traded and co-operated with
each other. The tribes included amongst others the Iceni, Gauls,
Galations and Celtiberians. During the Roman period many of the
Celtic peoples were pushed into tough and less hospitable areas
and became known for their hardiness, resourcefullness and ability
to survive in adverse circumstances. Whilst the Central European
Celtic strongholds were subdued by the Romans, the culture
survived laregly unchanged in Ireland, Scotland, Wales and parts
of France. The Celts were widely respected for their metal working
and artistic skills.
Some types of rings were often given by a tribes chief to a
deserving warrior who could use it as a badge of office and show
that he spoke for his chief in important matters.
Jewellery patterns vary including "Geometric" Celtic Swirl
patterns that developed from Greek "key work" patterns. The
design looks like a 6-armed Swastika.
There is also many designs similar to what looks like "SUN DISK"
or "SOLAR WHEEL" in honour of the sun God Bel or Belus on
Celtic rings and other Celtic jewelry.
These designs were quite popular among the Ancient Celts and
figured heavily in a lot of their decorative work.
Saxon and Viking Jewellery
The tastes of the Anglo-Saxons were never very different from
tastes on the mainland in Europe. Amongst all the descendents of
the northern tribes that the Romans had called barbarian, there
was great admiration for artistic workmanship in gold jewellery.
There was a view that this interest in gold was a basic element of
barbarian taste. The barbarians, it was thought, were concerned
with amazing by the costliness rather than to attract by
comeliness: to astonish rather than to charm. Certainly, in the
Anglo-Saxon culture, as in others, the costliness of gold jewelry
was part of its attraction.
Bronze, gold, and silver jewellery. Bronze was most common,
while gold and silver were usually for those of higher status
Necklaces were often adorned with beads, precious stones,
pendants, and crosses. Rock crystal pendants were believed to
have special properties in the eyes of pagan Saxons.
Brooches were used to fasten clothing together, such as cloaks.
After iron, bronze was probably the commonest metal used by the
Anglo-Saxons and Vikings. Bronze is a mixture of copper and tin
(and sometimes a small amount of lead). It was used for making a
wide variety of objects but was especially common for jewellery
such as brooches, buckles, belt ends, dress pins and rings. Making
bronze items was a difficult and complex craft carried out by
specialists. Once the copper ore was dug out of the ground the
copper had to be separated from the waste material. This was done
by smelting the ore in a furnace with sand and charcoal. When the
temperature inside the furnace reached about 1100°C (by pumping
with hand bellows) the copper melted and flowed to the bottom
where it was drawn out and cast into ingots.
When the craftsman had his copper ingots there were several ways
he could make the finished casting. Sometimes, if he wanted to
produce a lot of similar items he would make a model of the item in
wood or lead alloy and make a clay mould from this, or make an
antler mould by carving directly into the antler. From these
moulds he could then cast waxes to use as the masters for the
bronze casting. If he wanted to make a one off casting he made a
model of the object he wanted to cast out of wood or beeswax. If he
used wood he would press the wood into clay to make the shape he
wanted. Once the clay had been fired and the wood had burned
away he could use it as a mould. If he was using wax he would
wrap the wax model in clay (leaving a spout through which he
could later pour the molten metal) and dry the clay by firing or
leaving it somewhere warm and dry. This heating would melt the
wax and allow it to be poured off, leaving a hollow mould. Having
made the mould, the smith took enough copper to make the object
and melted it in a clay crucible. To turn it to bronze he added
about 10% tin (and sometimes some lead, to make the molten metal
flow better) to the molten copper. He then poured this into the
mould to achieve the object he wanted (if there was still any wax in
the mould the hot bronze would melt it out). When the bronze had
cooled the mould was broken open and the cast object was taken
out. If the object had not cast properly it could be remelted and
used for a later casting. If it was good it was cleaned up, polished,
and used. Moulds could also be made by carving out of stone,
usually soapstone or slate.
Some of these stone moulds were quite detailed, often in two
halves, others were much cruder one part moulds. These one piece
stone moulds were often used for ingot moulds. Sometimes items
were cast as blanks, usually in a clay or stone mould, although an
iron mould has been found in York. These blanks would then be
cleaned up and be decorated by engraving or punching. Objects
were also made out of bronze wire or by cutting sheets of bronze to
the right shape and stamping designs into the surface with iron
tools. Bronze was even used to cover iron objects. This was done
by coating the object with tallow and then applying bronze foil
over this. If the item was hollow it was then filled with charcoal.
The object was then covered in clay and placed in a fire. Bellows
were used to raise the temperature of the fire so that the bronze
melted and coated the surface of the object. This made items more
decorative and prevented rusting. Bronze (and sometimes gold and
silver) foils were sometimes embossed with a bronze die. These
foils could then be attached to other items for decoration.
The Vikings were particularly fond of silver arm and neck rings.
These were produced either by plaiting and twisting silver wire or
by hammering out a band from an ingot and punching it with
decorative iron punches. Coins were made by moniers who were
granted a special licence from the king. To make a coin the monier
would take a disc of silver of the correct weight and place it
between two pieces of steel which had been engraved with the
design required on the coin. He would then hit the top piece of
steel with a heavy hammer and the design would be stamped onto
the silver.
Gold was used mainly for jewellery which was made in the same
way as bronze jewellery, although granulation and filigree work
was often used to enhance gold jewellery. Gold jewellery was often
inset with precious or semi-precious stones such as garnet. Gold
was also used to gild other metals to create the impression that the
object was actually made of gold, or to add a contrasting colour.
Several gilding techniques were in use, and mercury, used in firegilding, has been excavated at York and Hedeby. Much gold and
silver was used in the production of ecclesiastical items such as
altar-crosses, reliquaries, portative altars, etc.. Gold and silver
were also used to make thread for embroidery and braid weaving,
often also ecclesiastical in nature. Pewter was used to make cheap
jewellery and was usually cast in moulds made from antler,
although stamped pewter jewellery was also made. Jewellery
making was a specialist craft, and was frequently carried out at
royal manors under royal patronage.
.
Middle Eastern Jewelry
This funnel ring originated in the former Persia area where rings
were worn by both men and women. The Achaemenid Persian
empire dominated the Near East. Because of its great size, a wide
variety of styles and art forms existed throughout the empire.
Nonetheless, elements were drawn together from various eastern
and western cultures to create an artistic style that is distinctly
Achaemenid. An innovation of the period is the introduction of
western-style metal finger rings, which begin to replace both stamp
and cylinder seals such as this.
Sumerian, Babylonian, and Assyrian tombs of the 3rd and 2nd
millennia BC have yielded a great quantity of headdresses,
necklaces, earrings, and animal amulet figures in gold, silver, and
gems. A well-known example is a royal diadem from Ur made in
the shape of thin gold beech leaves (British Museum, London).
Fine gold and silver jewelry was also made in ancient Anatolia,
Persia, and Phoenicia. Techniques included granulation (in which
surfaces are decorated with clusters of tiny grains of gold),
filigree, inlaid gems, and cloisonné and champlevé enamel.
Evidence of Egyptian influence on Phoenician work and of
Mesopotamian styles on Persian work suggests widespread trade
or other contact.
Egyptian Jewelry
The ancient Egyptians were familiar with most of the processes of
ornamenting metal that are still employed today. They produced
skillfully chased, engraved, soldered, repoussé, and inlaid jewelry.
They commonly worked in gold and silver and inlaid these metals
with semiprecious stones such as carnelian, jasper, amethyst,
turquoise, and lapis lazuli and with enamel and glass. Their
jewelry included diadems; wide bead necklaces or collars; square
pectorals; hoop, hinged, or bead bracelets; and rings. Many
Egyptians wore two bracelets on each arm, one on the wrist and
one above the elbow. An especially popular ornament was the
signet ring. Jewelry motifs-the scarab (beetle), lotus, falcon,
serpent, and eye, for example-were derived from religious symbols.
Vast quantities of jewelry have been found in tombs. Especially
notable are ornaments from the tomb of Tutankhamun (reigned
1333-1323 BCbc), of the 18th Dynasty, now in the Egyptian
Museum, Cairo.
Greek Jewelry
Trojan and Cretan artisans of the Minoan period, although
working at opposite ends of the Aegean region, executed earrings,
bracelets, and necklaces of a common type that persisted from
about 2500 BC to the beginning of the Classical period of Greek
art (479-323 BC). Typical work consisted of thin coils and chains
of linked and plaited wire, and thin foil formed into petals and
rosettes. Stamping and enameling were common. Free use was
also made of gold granulation and filigree. Stone inlay was rare.
Prevailing motifs were spirals and naturalistic patterns drawn
from cuttlefish, starfish, and butterflies.
Archaic Greek jewelry and Etruscan and other Italian jewelry
made in the period between 700 and 500 BC was almost entirely
inspired by Egyptian and Assyrian examples imported by
Phoenician merchants (see Etruscan Civilization). The techniques
remained fundamentally the same as in the preceding period;
embossed or stamped plates were the basic element in the work;
granulation continued to be employed and was refined by Etruscan
artists to an extraordinary degree. Representative of the period is
a handsome Greek necklace from Rhodes that consists of seven
rectangular gold plaques bearing winged figures in relief and
edged with gold balls (7th century BC, British Museum).
Authentic Ancient Silver Rings –
History
Goldsmiths worked mainly with the two most precious metals, gold
and silver, and used enamel, pearls, and stones for the decoration
of their products. Gold was seen as the most prestigious metal, for
which silver-gilt or silver were seen as poorer substitutes, most
suitable for lower classes. A large proportion of gold used in late
medieval production was recycled gold: goldsmiths used ancient
coins, jewelry, or other gold objects as their raw material.
In the High Middle Ages, the previously produced gold stock of
Europe was primarily accumulated in the court of the Byzantine
emperors; consequently, little gold was circulated in the Western
world. For coinage, for example, silver was generally used until
the 13th century, when gold coinage was introduced in Italy,
France, and England. This gold, however, was not newly produced
but acquired through trade with the Arab countries, rich in gold
since the early Middle Ages. From the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries, gold production in Europe increased alongside the
continuing importation of gold from the Arab world. A significant
quantity of gold was mined, especially in Bohemia and Hungary,
which two countries provided up to eleven twelfth of the total gold
production of late medieval Europe. Most gold was produced by
mining, but some gold was also gained by panning (swirling the
deposits of rivers around in a pan to separate quartz from gold),
especially in the Rhine area. Silver, in contrast to gold, was
produced continuously through the Middle Ages in Europe, and
even exported from there.
In addition to silver mines that played an important part in silver
production in the early and the High Middle Ages-Poitou
(Merovingian period), Sardinia (11th-12th c.), the environs of
Goslar, Germany (10th-12th c.), Freiberg, Saxony (12th-14th c.),rich silver mines were discovered in the second half of the
thirteenth century in Kuttenberg (Kutná Hora), Bohemia, which
supplied silver in great quantities until its decline, due to the
Hussite wars, in the fifteenth century. Precious stones were
acquired almost exclusively from long-distance trade. Among the
most frequently used stones, rubies, sapphires, emeralds,
turquoises, and diamonds came mainly from the East: rubies were
brought from India and Ceylon, sapphires from Ceylon, Arabia,
and Persia, emeralds from Egypt, turquoises from Persia and
Tibet, and diamonds from India and Central Africa. Europe also
produced a variety of gems and semi-precious stones in the later
Middle Ages. The source for amethysts was Germany and Russia.
Rock crystal came from Germany, Switzerland and France, opals
and garnets, from Eastern Europe. Besides precious stones, also a
great variety of less valuable stones were frequently used, as it
turns out from a list of precious stones written by a Jewish
merchant in 1453.
For precious stone decoration, goldsmiths very frequently used
also antique cameos and intaglios - precious or semiprecious
stones decorated with engravings or reliefs-that survived (often
encased in older, medieval metalwork) in large numbers and were
highly sought after in the later Middle Ages. Cameos were set into
many types of jewelry as decoration, and often reused again. Their
usage is a evidence of the conscious attempt to keep awake or
revive the spirit of Antiquity. The popularity of antique cameos and
intaglios was, in fact, so high, that medieval gem-cutting itself
developed in emulation of the classical models. However, Western
European Middle Ages knew only clumsy imitations of antique
cameos, while in Byzantium stone-carving remained a living
tradition throughout the Middle Ages. Byzantine carved stones
were eagerly imported to the West. Other raw materials for the
decoration of jewelry included freshwater pearls from Scotland,
mother-of-pearl, amber-the fossilised resin of pine trees-found in
great quantities along the Baltic coast, jet-the black fossilised
remains of trees-mainly from England and Spain, and coral from
the Mediterranean coast in North Africa.
Emeralds and diamonds were held in almost the same high esteem
as rubies. The garnets, amethysts and Scotch pearls did duty for
rubies and pearls in cheaper pieces.
It was commonly held in the Middle Ages that by their very nature
stones and minerals had magic potential. For that reason, various
gems were worn for prophylactic purposes: to detect poison, to
assist childbirth, to prevent epilepsy. However, the magic of jewels
bearing an inscription, sign, or figure was much more effective.
The medieval world inherited a large stock of antique cameos and
intaglios. These were held in high esteem both for their beauty and
for the supposed magic power of their images. A special kind of
lapidarium treated engraved gems and attributed magical virtues
to them: If you find a seal sculpted in black agate that depicts a
man, naked and swollen, and another one, well-dressed and
crowned, and he holds a chalice in one hand and a plant-branch in
another, fit it into any ring, and anyone with fever who wears this
ring will be healed in three days. Engraved gems were,
consequently, in demand for personal ornaments to be constantly
worn. The classical subjects of antique engraved gemstones were
often interpreted in the light of Christian iconography.
Another way to reinforce the magic of a stone was to inscribe it
with a "name of power" or a wonder-working formula: If you
inscribe a ring with the letters T. B. L. N. C. H. V. S. H. A. , it will
keep your body intact and safe from any sickness, and mainly from
fever and dropsy. In purchases it brings luck, it makes its bearer
able and lovable in war and in litigations and in peace and grants
him superiority and victory. It helps women in conception and
birth. It gives its owner and wearer peace and harmony and
wealth, provided that it is worn chastely and honestly.
Many goldsmiths worked in silver and other metals as well
(bronze), while some artists worked in silver only (silversmiths).
The term "jeweller" also occurs in medieval sources, but its
meaning is not clear. It probably does not refer to makers of jewels
but rather to traders, appraisers, or cutters of gemstones, or
retailers of jewels.
There were both monastic and secular goldsmiths working in the
Middle Ages. In the earlier Middle Ages, production took place
predominantly in a monastic setting; later, however, jewelry
production was closely associated also with the courts of rulers
and nobility. In the late Middle Ages, urban goldsmiths acquired
the leading role in the production of goldsmiths' works. They
worked in independent workshops but were organised in guilds,
medieval associations of craftsmen in the same trade that
controlled and regulated the activities of its members. Membership
in guilds was compulsory, but it also offered great advantages:
guilds provided security and protected the interests of its members.
The guilds controlled the prices and the quality of the products and
also determined the duration and system of training. The growing
number of goldsmiths-parallel with the urban expansion and
growth in trade in the thirteenth and early fourteenth centuriesmade guild regulations more necessary in the later Middle Ages.
Authentic Ancient Gold Rings –
History
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Rings
The aurifex or goldsmith would have been an honoured craftsman.
In actual fact, in early Rome the wearing of finger rings and other
items of gold, as well as the burial of gold rings and articles, was
legally restricted, but during the period of the empire customs
relaxed and jewellery was lavishly worn. As the empire expanded
(AD200-400) Roman techniques and styles developed.
The inhabitants of Ireland have been prospecting for gold in rivers
since the Bronze Age. The Minoan Culture grew rich as a trading
stop along Mediterranean trade routes and as a result, its jewelry
making flourished. The Minoans began producing exceptional
stamped gold sheeting and filigree and granulated Gold jewelry,
burial masks and beads by 2000 BC, which spread to Mycenaean
Islands and other Greek Islands and eventually on to the mainland.
These techniques of filigree and granulation show up in Etruscan
art, which saw elevated heights of beauty and technical skill as a
contrast to the time of the emergence of Greek culture, when Gold
use was rare.
When Roman civilization began to flourish, the city began to
attract talented Gold artisans who created gold-framed cameos,
necklaces, pendants, bracelets, headdresses and earrings. Roman
gold jewelry included rings that only those citizens of the higher
classes could wear but the wearing of gold rings later included
lower classes of warriors until finally, by the 3rd century AD,
anyone other than the very lowest could wear a gold ring.
Historians credit Roman Culture with the advent of the ring used
as a symbol of engagement.
The use of Gold in Rome grew beyond its use as jewelry and
expanded into household items and furniture in the homes of the
higher classes. By the third century AD, the citizens of Rome wore
necklaces that contained Coins with the image of the emperor. As
Christianity spread through the continent, Europeans ceased
burying their dead with their jewelry and thus, few examples
survive from the Middle Ages, except those of royalty and from
church hordes. Modern historians gather information about the
jewelry of the middle ages from artwork and literature that began
to develop during this time.
Among cultures of the Middle Ages, the Celts produced intricate
Brooches while nearly every other region produced gold religious
items. By the Renaissance, Classicism began to dictate the
production of all art forms, and resulted in a rebirth in jewelry as
an art form, in fact historians say artists such as Boticelli were
apprentices in Goldsmith shops. In the height of the Renaissance
period, the houses of royalty competed to accumulate larger
collections of jewelry, which eventually slowed only to increase
again by the reign of Louis XIV in the 17th Century.
Gold Sassanian Rings.
The Sassanids established an empire roughly within the frontiers
achieved by the Achaemenids, with the capital at Ctesiphon. The
Sassanids consciously sought to resuscitate Iranian traditions and
to obliterate Greek cultural influence. Their rule was
characterized by considerable centralization, ambitious urban
planning,
agricultural
development,
and
technological
improvements. Sassanid rulers adopted the title of shahanshah
(king of kings), as sovereigns over numerous petty rulers, known as
shahrdars. Historians believe that society was divided into four
classes: the priests, warriors, secretaries, and commoners. The
royal princes, petty rulers, great landlords, and priests together
constituted a privileged stratum, and the social system appears to
have been fairly rigid.
Medieval Brooches
Medieval brooches - Brooches were an important part of the
wardrobe. Along with jewelled belts of every kind, medieval
brooches were practical as well as decorative. They held up cloaks
and tunics and various bits of fabric.
The most common type of medieval brooches in the later middle
ages is the circle pin, often jewelled, and usually with inscriptions
extolling the virtues of a loved one. The brooch was a neccesity in
Medieval wardrobes.
In early Medieval times, the most common style of brooches was of
Celtic design, in the later Medieval times the most common style
was a Circle Brooch which were made of precious metals and even
jeweled. Medieval Collectibles offers high quality Medieval
Brooches made of sterling silver and pewter that can be worn with
your Medieval Garb or your Modern Day wardrobe.
Courtly love also appeared in more elaborate brooches, where
figures of lovers were formed in gold and enamelled in bright
colours.
Romano-British Brooches
Romano-British jewellery was made and used in Britain after the
Roman conquest in AD43, using Roman or native styles or a
combination of both.
History
Roman Ancient Bracelets
Sometimes set with gemstones and coins. Roman glass
bracelets were made, clear or variously coloured. A jewellery case
found in a woman's grave at Lyons includes gold bracelets
decorated with cameo medallions (one of which portrays Emperor
Commodus which put it at least at the end of the second century)
and a pair of bracelets made from twisted strands of gold wire.
Bracelets of many different designs and materials evolved within
the extensive geographical and chronological range of the Roman
Empire. Bracelets and necklaces were part of the costume in the
Roman world and were intended purely for feminine adornment,
having no utilitarian function. Large objects such as a bracelet
rarely find their way into the ground by accident, and we must rely
on graves and roman settlement sites for their recovery.
In the later Roman period quite narrow bronze hoops with
geometric designs sharply engraved or cut in the so-called "chip-
carved" style were common. Scores of patterns have been noted
and recorded, from simple regular transverse grooves or milling
over the whole surface or series of punched circles to more
complex combinations of transverse and diagonal lines, circles
and dots. Patterns in relief such as zig-zag lines and angular
meanders were created by cutting or filing a regular sequence of
notches.
Earrings
Hoops and pendants were ubiquitous in Roman earrings. In
simpler types the ends often hooked together, or were fitted with a
pendant club or a bezel-set conical stoneMost earrings at the time
had long, S-shaped hooks for insertion into the earlobe. Some of
the more ornate versions displayed clusters of emeralds or pearls.
Necklaces
Both necklaces and neck chains were worn. Neck chains would be
wound several times round the neck or worn down over the breast,
occasionally with a pendant. Pendants of small bears or other
animals or carvings in relief with busts of one or two people are
not uncommon, and it is possible that these latter were given as
gifts to mark an anniversary or at a wedding.
Rings
Rings for fingers or thumbs were worn by men and women,
sometimes several at a time. They were made from gold, silver,
bronze, iron, lead or glass. Some have a small key attached.
Betrothal rings (anulus pronubus) were given, made of iron when
gold was restricted, and still popularly of iron even at a later date.
Signet rings were important and were often large and ornate,
perhaps with the seal engraved on a gemstone. In fact engraved
gems were popular.
Ancient Greek Golden Jewellery
The first jewellery that man ever wore are lost in the depth of prehistorical times and it is impossible to trace them. So, research
hasn't yet showed if jewellery use preceded the use of clothes or
the opposite. The psychological reasons which led to the use of
jewellery is also unknown whether it was to attract the opposite
sex, the desire to be more beautiful or the need to be protected with
the help of talismans. Indeed, it has been proved that jewellery was
used to attract good powers or to turn away the bad.
At first, jewellery was created by unprocessed objects such as
animal teeth, shells, nuts, peculiar rocks and fruit stones. It is
logical to think that jewellery was firstly created in countries
where there was an abundance of gold. The dominant role of Asia
and Egypt in this domain, jewellery production, is due to the
above-mentioned reason although the oldest golden jewellery have
been discovered in the Balkan area. With the creation of metal
jewellery the magical character of natural jewellery didn't cease to
exist. This was the fact with golden jewellery since gold was not
wearing out let alone the fact that it was always shiny, leading
people to believe that it had supernatural powers. With the years
passing by, when religion was separated from magic the magical
characterizations of the jewellery were diminished to some extent.
In Greece for example, research has shown that some iron rings
which have been discovered in Mycenaean tombs were thought of
as magical since iron was not yet a part of the everyday life of
people, along with some stones used for stamping that were worn
as talismans.
After the destruction of the magnificent Mycenaean centers there
were economic difficulties and that is why the jewellery samples
that we have from this era are only a few, mainly from copper, a
few iron and only the minimum volume is golden. Since gold is not
in abundance in Greece, goldsmiths and their art cease to exist.
After the 9th century things changed again since the Greeks
acquired new contacts with the gold markets of the East. So,
during this era the history of gold starts again. The 8th century BC
can be characterized as the century of its peak, mainly in Attica.
During the time of the Homeric poems the jewellery are either
well-shaped objects of everyday use such as brooches and pins or
ornaments which underline beauty. During the seventh century the
talisman character of the jewels re-surfaces, and their powers
seem to be valid for the person wearing the jewel or for the dead in
their other lifetime to which the simple man didn't stop believing.
This notion will remain alive until the end of the antiquity when it
will be transferred to crosses and other forms of jewels with
Christian symbols.
The jewels found in tombs are divided in two big categories. The
ones worn in real life and their substitutes. The second category
was used exclusively for burials and they were copies of the real
ones which were replaced inside the tombs when the real jewels
could not be used for economic or other reasons. The custom of
burying the dead with their jewels was very strong since jewellery
were not used in the everyday lives of people but during a special
appearance or in feasts and especially on wedding days. Real
jewellery were either dedicated to some alter or buried in some
tomb anyhow. That is why we often meet jewels decorated with
themes referring to the after life or immortality.
Ancient Greek Earrings
Gold in general is a rare metal. Few are the places on earth which
can show significant quantities of gold and Greece is poor in the
specific metal too. The main locations where gold is extracted are
Africa and Asia.
In this section which is dedicated in the ancient Greek golden
jewellery you will have the opportunity to see many different kinds
of jewels such as earrings, bracelets, rings, necklaces, wreaths,
diadems, pins and broaches which are real works of art.
Wreaths
The oldest wreaths mentioned in scripts correspond to the second
half of the 5th century and refer to honorary accolades of
important people, such as winners in athletic or other events.
Diadems and Tiaras
The word diadem characterizes the crowns of royal families which
were basically weaved head bands. Alexander the Great received
one after he won Darius the 4th and became a king. The diadems
received the form given to them today a bit later and they are
mainly golden and often found in tombs.
Earrings
Along with the necklaces the earrings are those jewels which
present the biggest variety. Many earrings have been found in
peculiar shapes that still make us wonder how they could have
been worn. Today, we can say that most of the ancient earrings
must have been worn while hanging on a ring which pierced the
ear, mostly made of silver or copper. Most of those earrings could
not be preserved due to metal oxidation.
Necklaces and Talismans
In most cases the necklace is a total of small similar or dissimilar
items hanging from a string at first from the neck and later from
the clothes with pins and broaches right in front of the chest.
Pins
Pins are already known from the Age of Copper. During the prehistoric times we can find pins in different sizes but their use hasn't
been clarified yet. Those having been found in pairs are associated
with the holding of clothes while those found in a unique piece
were probably used as decorative articles or worn on the hair
combined with diadems.
Broaches
From all the kinds of jewellery the broaches are the ones which
made their appearance last. They were first found during the
Mycenaean years at the same time with the pins used to hold
women's clothing in place, on the shoulders. They served the same
purposes and they may have been used to hold the peplum's side
closed when the dress was held on the shoulders by pins.
Bracelets
The bracelets in antiquity were mainly used in both hands over the
elbow or around the wrist as today. Even the copper bracelet
findings are not many. Their appearance is simple at first, made
from wire or more solid materials which formed a spiral, multispiraled or open with decorated or non-decorated edges.
Rings
Rings are among the oldest jewels ever worn by people. In simple
form made from bands are known even from the Neolithic era.
During the 10th but mostly during the 9th century rings were made
rich in curving decorations used probably only to be buried in
tombs or offered in alters.