Chain
18th century (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
In the 17th century, Russian men and women of all ranks wore long chains of heavy silver filigree. By the 19th century these chains had fallen out of fashion. Only priests, and people who wore traditional dress, continued to use them. It is impossible to date these chains accurately, as they remained unchanged for centuries, and are rarely marked.
Russian filigree chains are usually made from scrolls of wire soldered together side by side to make individual links. This chain has links of four scrolls each, but wide chains can have as many as eight. At each end it has a cast wedge-shaped terminal with a large loop. Originally these loops would have been joined by a U-shaped link to hold a cross or pendant.
Russian filigree chains are usually made from scrolls of wire soldered together side by side to make individual links. This chain has links of four scrolls each, but wide chains can have as many as eight. At each end it has a cast wedge-shaped terminal with a large loop. Originally these loops would have been joined by a U-shaped link to hold a cross or pendant.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Cast silver and filigree |
| Brief description | Long silver chain of linked filigree units, Russia, 18th century. |
| Physical description | Chain made from links of four figure-of-eight shapes soldered together side by side, joined to each other by four plain wire rings. Cast wedge-shaped terminals. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions | illegible marks (On sides of the loops at the end of the terminals.) |
| Summary | In the 17th century, Russian men and women of all ranks wore long chains of heavy silver filigree. By the 19th century these chains had fallen out of fashion. Only priests, and people who wore traditional dress, continued to use them. It is impossible to date these chains accurately, as they remained unchanged for centuries, and are rarely marked. Russian filigree chains are usually made from scrolls of wire soldered together side by side to make individual links. This chain has links of four scrolls each, but wide chains can have as many as eight. At each end it has a cast wedge-shaped terminal with a large loop. Originally these loops would have been joined by a U-shaped link to hold a cross or pendant. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 130-1866 |
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| Record created | March 7, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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