Earring
1812-1867 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Italian women have always loved lavish display. Even for the poorest, a rich show of jewellery was all important. Italian goldsmiths were expert at making a little material go a very long way. Many pieces seem too large to wear comfortably, but they are usually made of very thin gold, and are much lighter than they appear.
All Italian women wore gold earrings. Their shapes varied widely in different places. This earring, with its bi-conical pendant decorated with applied filigree, is typical of the Veneto, the area around Venice. Venice had been famous since the Middle Ages for its fine gold and filigree work.
It was bought as part of the Castellani collection of Italian Peasant Jewellery at the International Exhibition, Paris, 1867.
All Italian women wore gold earrings. Their shapes varied widely in different places. This earring, with its bi-conical pendant decorated with applied filigree, is typical of the Veneto, the area around Venice. Venice had been famous since the Middle Ages for its fine gold and filigree work.
It was bought as part of the Castellani collection of Italian Peasant Jewellery at the International Exhibition, Paris, 1867.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Gold |
| Brief description | Gold drop earring with repousse decoration, Venice (Italy), 1812-1867. |
| Physical description | Gold earring with hinged wire and oval front plate decorated with stamped domes and numerous applied wire rings. Bi-conical hollow bead hanging from the wire, with similar decoration, and a small plain bead pendant at the bottom. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions | sword in a shaped frame (On suspension ring of pendant.)
|
| Summary | Italian women have always loved lavish display. Even for the poorest, a rich show of jewellery was all important. Italian goldsmiths were expert at making a little material go a very long way. Many pieces seem too large to wear comfortably, but they are usually made of very thin gold, and are much lighter than they appear. All Italian women wore gold earrings. Their shapes varied widely in different places. This earring, with its bi-conical pendant decorated with applied filigree, is typical of the Veneto, the area around Venice. Venice had been famous since the Middle Ages for its fine gold and filigree work. It was bought as part of the Castellani collection of Italian Peasant Jewellery at the International Exhibition, Paris, 1867. |
| Bibliographic reference | 'Italian Jewellery as worn by the Peasants of Italy', Arundel Society, London, 1868, Plate 3 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 59-1868 |
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| Record created | February 8, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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