Pendant
1800-1867 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
After the prolonged and destructive Thirty Years War of 1618–48, Europe split into a Catholic south and a Protestant north. This led to an increase in the number of pilgrimage sites in the Catholic area, and a massive expansion in the production of religious medals, crosses and souvenir jewellery, often in a form that was specific to a particular holy site. Worshippers believed that images of saints or the Virgin and Child could work miracles and offer protection against illness or the dangers of travel.
The medallion in this pendant is stamped with the image of the Black Madonna of Oropa, an important pilgrimage site in Piedmont. Women in Catholic countries, such as Italy, commonly wore crosses and other religious objects as jewellery with their traditional dress. These were often made of filigree, which was considered synonymous with traditional jewellery of all kinds in the 19th century.
This pendant was bought for £1 as part of the Castellani collection of Italian Peasant Jewellery at the International Exhibition, Paris, 1867.
The medallion in this pendant is stamped with the image of the Black Madonna of Oropa, an important pilgrimage site in Piedmont. Women in Catholic countries, such as Italy, commonly wore crosses and other religious objects as jewellery with their traditional dress. These were often made of filigree, which was considered synonymous with traditional jewellery of all kinds in the 19th century.
This pendant was bought for £1 as part of the Castellani collection of Italian Peasant Jewellery at the International Exhibition, Paris, 1867.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Stamped silver in a silver filigree frame |
Brief description | Silver filigree pendant with a religious medallion, Romagna (Italy), 1800-1867. |
Physical description | Religious medallion in an ornate filigree frame in the shape of a crowned, double-headed eagle. The medallion has a male saint in Roman armour on one side, and the image of the Virgin of Oropa on the other. |
Dimensions |
|
Subjects depicted | |
Summary | After the prolonged and destructive Thirty Years War of 1618–48, Europe split into a Catholic south and a Protestant north. This led to an increase in the number of pilgrimage sites in the Catholic area, and a massive expansion in the production of religious medals, crosses and souvenir jewellery, often in a form that was specific to a particular holy site. Worshippers believed that images of saints or the Virgin and Child could work miracles and offer protection against illness or the dangers of travel. The medallion in this pendant is stamped with the image of the Black Madonna of Oropa, an important pilgrimage site in Piedmont. Women in Catholic countries, such as Italy, commonly wore crosses and other religious objects as jewellery with their traditional dress. These were often made of filigree, which was considered synonymous with traditional jewellery of all kinds in the 19th century. This pendant was bought for £1 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 7 |
Collection | |
Accession number | 363-1868 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
Record created | April 24, 2009 |
Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest