Girdle thumbnail 1
Girdle thumbnail 2
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Girdle

1710 (made), c. 1750 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This belt and clasp are characteristic of a type of costume ornament worn by the women of the Albanian community of Piana degli Albanesi, Sicily. The belt is known as a 'brezi', from the Albanian word 'brez', meaning 'race' or 'progeny', and the term refers to the function of the belt as a symbol of motherhood. A 'brezi' is an important element in the ritual leading up to marriage and subsequent motherhood, as the bride-to-be wears it as she displays her dowry. The clasp ('borchia') which fastens the belt is decorated with the image of the local patron saint, in this case St George.
The belt and clasp are traditionally the most important pieces of jewellery worn by the women of this community.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Clasp
  • Girdle (Belt)
Materials and techniques
Silver
Brief description
Silver, Sicily (Piana degli Albanesi), the belt stamped with Palermo assay officer's mark for 1710, the clasp c. 1750.
Physical description
Belt made of 13 cast square silver sections of open-work with a rayed sun in the centre of each section, joined with two cast silver links in the shape of flowers. The clasp of silver with a cast image of St George slaying the dragon beneath a canopy, cherubs either side of the saint.
Dimensions
  • Clasp only height: 13cm
  • Clasp only width: 14cm
  • Clasp; approximate depth depth: 2.5cm
  • Clasp only weight: 273.9g
  • Belt only; includes clasps at the end length: 62.7cm
  • Belt width: 5.5cm
  • Belt; approximate depth depth: 1cm
  • Belt weight: 582.7g
Marks and inscriptions
  • Eagle with lowered wings over letters R.V.P. (On front of 10 segments of belt.)
    Translation
    Mark for silver, Palermo, before around 1710.
  • 'P.C.710' in rectangular frame. (On front of 11 segments of belt.)
    Translation
    Mark of assay master Placido Caruso, of Palermo, 1710.
  • 'PC' and star in rectangular frame. (On front of 9 segments of belt.)
    Translation
    Mark of unidentified maker
  • Eagle with raised wings over letters R.V.P. (On front of clasp, below horse's front legs.)
    Translation
    Mark for silver, Palermo, after around 1710.
  • 'A.M.' in rectangular frame. (On front of clasp, at right of crown.)
    Translation
    Mark of unidentified maker.
  • Illegible mark, possibly ending in '2', in rectangular frame. (On front of clasp, on wing of dragon.)
    Translation
    Assay master's mark.
  • Partial mark of an eagle with raised wings. (On front of clasp, on base of dragon.)
    Translation
    Mark for silver, Palermo, after around 1710.
Gallery label
2. GIRDLE Worn at festivals by peasants of Piana dei Greci, Palermo, Sicily. SICILIAN (Palermo mark): second half of 18th century. Marks, (?) SCC and AM (buckle); PC 710 (girdle). Given by Mrs. Richards M.65-1949(1970-1980)
Credit line
Given by Mrs E. M. Richards
Object history
This belt was given to the V&A in 1949 by Mrs Euphrosyne M. Richards, née Whitaker. She presumably inherited it from her mother, the famous Sicilian collector Euphrosyne (Effie) Whitaker, née Manuel. It was recorded as owned by her when illustrated by the British Consul-General Sidney J.A. Churchill in a special issue of 'The Studio' devoted to Peasant Art in Italy in 1913.
Summary
This belt and clasp are characteristic of a type of costume ornament worn by the women of the Albanian community of Piana degli Albanesi, Sicily. The belt is known as a 'brezi', from the Albanian word 'brez', meaning 'race' or 'progeny', and the term refers to the function of the belt as a symbol of motherhood. A 'brezi' is an important element in the ritual leading up to marriage and subsequent motherhood, as the bride-to-be wears it as she displays her dowry. The clasp ('borchia') which fastens the belt is decorated with the image of the local patron saint, in this case St George.
The belt and clasp are traditionally the most important pieces of jewellery worn by the women of this community.
Bibliographic references
  • Accascina, Maria. I Marchi delle Argenterie e Oreficerie Siciliane. Busto Arsizio: Bramante Editrice, 1976
  • Piana degli Albanesi / Hora e Arbëreshëvet. Quaderni di Biblos, 1/10. Palermo: Comune di Piana degli Albanesi and Biblioteca comunale Giuseppe Schiro di Piana degli Albanesi, 2000. Guidebook to the area and its customs.
  • Francesco Polizzi, 'Splendori di Sicilia al Victoria and Albert Museum' (doctoral thesis), Palermo, 2011, p.188.
  • S.J.A. Churchill, 'Peasant Jewellery' in 'Peasant Art in Italy', a special edition of 'The Studio', Autumn 1913, fig. 300.
  • Perry, Jane. Traditional Jewellery in Nineteenth-Century Europe. London: V&A Publishing, 2013. ISBN 9781851777297
  • Concetta di Natale, Maria. Ore e argenti di Sicilia dal Quattrocento al Settecento. Catalogue of an exhibition held at the Museo Regionale Pepoli, Trapani, July 1-Oct. 30, 1989. Milan: Electa, 1989. ISBN 8843528491
  • di Natale, Maria Concetta. Ori e argenti di Sicilia dal Quattrocento al Settecento. Catalogue of the exhibition at the Museo Regionale Pepoli, Trapani, 1 July - 30 October 1989. Milan: Electa, 1989. ISBN 8843528491
Collection
Accession number
M.65:1&2-1949

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Record createdAugust 1, 2006
Record URL
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