Bracelet
Probably 1500 - 1600 (made)
On display at V&A South Kensington
British Galleries, Room 57Object Type
It appears that no comparable Indian bracelets from this date have survived. The tradition is that it was one of Queen Elizabeth's gifts to Lord Hunsdon. In the inventory of Elizabeth's jewels in 1587 there is a description of a similar bracelet, which might be the same one: it was 'of rock crystal set with sparcks of Rubies powdered and little sparckes of saphiers made hoopwise called Persia worke'.
People
By family tradition the bracelet was a present from Elizabeth I to Henry Carey, (1526-1596), 1st Baron Hunsdon, first cousin of The Queen. He was the son of Mary Boleyn, sister of Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth's mother. He had a prominent career as a courtier and soldier. He played an important role in the suppression of the rebellion of the northern earls in 1570, was appointed Lord Chamberlain in 1586, and was a commissioner at the trial of Mary, Queen of Scots in 1587. When the Armada threatened in 1588, he commanded Elizabeth's bodyguard at Tilbury in 1588.
Places
This is one of the four Hunsdon jewels which have long been associated with Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire and have been lent as a group to the British Galleries. One of the jewels, the Hunsdon Onyx, is mentioned specifically in the will of George Carey (1547-1603), 2nd Baron Hunsdon, dated 10 May 1599.
It appears that no comparable Indian bracelets from this date have survived. The tradition is that it was one of Queen Elizabeth's gifts to Lord Hunsdon. In the inventory of Elizabeth's jewels in 1587 there is a description of a similar bracelet, which might be the same one: it was 'of rock crystal set with sparcks of Rubies powdered and little sparckes of saphiers made hoopwise called Persia worke'.
People
By family tradition the bracelet was a present from Elizabeth I to Henry Carey, (1526-1596), 1st Baron Hunsdon, first cousin of The Queen. He was the son of Mary Boleyn, sister of Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth's mother. He had a prominent career as a courtier and soldier. He played an important role in the suppression of the rebellion of the northern earls in 1570, was appointed Lord Chamberlain in 1586, and was a commissioner at the trial of Mary, Queen of Scots in 1587. When the Armada threatened in 1588, he commanded Elizabeth's bodyguard at Tilbury in 1588.
Places
This is one of the four Hunsdon jewels which have long been associated with Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire and have been lent as a group to the British Galleries. One of the jewels, the Hunsdon Onyx, is mentioned specifically in the will of George Carey (1547-1603), 2nd Baron Hunsdon, dated 10 May 1599.
object details
| Categories | |
| Object Type | |
| Materials and Techniques | Rock crystal mounted in cabochon rubies and sapphires set in gold. |
| Brief Description | Rock crystal bracelet mounted with cabochon rubies and sapphires set in gold. Probably made in the Indian subcontinent, 16th century. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Lent from the collections at Berkeley Castle |
| Summary | Object Type It appears that no comparable Indian bracelets from this date have survived. The tradition is that it was one of Queen Elizabeth's gifts to Lord Hunsdon. In the inventory of Elizabeth's jewels in 1587 there is a description of a similar bracelet, which might be the same one: it was 'of rock crystal set with sparcks of Rubies powdered and little sparckes of saphiers made hoopwise called Persia worke'. People By family tradition the bracelet was a present from Elizabeth I to Henry Carey, (1526-1596), 1st Baron Hunsdon, first cousin of The Queen. He was the son of Mary Boleyn, sister of Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth's mother. He had a prominent career as a courtier and soldier. He played an important role in the suppression of the rebellion of the northern earls in 1570, was appointed Lord Chamberlain in 1586, and was a commissioner at the trial of Mary, Queen of Scots in 1587. When the Armada threatened in 1588, he commanded Elizabeth's bodyguard at Tilbury in 1588. Places This is one of the four Hunsdon jewels which have long been associated with Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire and have been lent as a group to the British Galleries. One of the jewels, the Hunsdon Onyx, is mentioned specifically in the will of George Carey (1547-1603), 2nd Baron Hunsdon, dated 10 May 1599. |
| Bibliographic Reference | Ancestral Jewels, page 14, by Diana Scarisbrick |
| Other Number | |
| Collection | |
| Accession Number | LOAN:MET ANON.2:2-1998 |
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| record created | March 27, 2003 |
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