Earring
1815-1867 (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 comes from Lazio, in central Italy, and has the gold mark of the Papal States. Simple hoop earrings, often very large and with faceted or domed decoration, were common throughout central and northern Italy in the 19th century, and are still widely worn today.
This earring 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 comes from Lazio, in central Italy, and has the gold mark of the Papal States. Simple hoop earrings, often very large and with faceted or domed decoration, were common throughout central and northern Italy in the 19th century, and are still widely worn today.
This earring 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 hoop earring with beaded band and hollow facetted bead, Lazio (Italy), 1815-1867. |
Physical description | Hoop earring with beaded decoration on the lower part, and a hollow faceted bead concealing the point of the wire. Hinged wire, with supporting wire across the space of the hoop, and small loop at top for support. |
Dimensions |
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Marks and inscriptions | Crossed keys with mitre above, in shield-shaped frame. (On beaded section of hoop.)
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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 comes from Lazio, in central Italy, and has the gold mark of the Papal States. Simple hoop earrings, often very large and with faceted or domed decoration, were common throughout central and northern Italy in the 19th century, and are still widely worn today. This earring 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 8 |
Collection | |
Accession number | 160-1868 |
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Record created | November 21, 2008 |
Record URL |
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