Pendant Cross
1800-1867 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Italian women have always loved lavish display. Even for the poorest, an impressive show of jewellery was all important. Like Catholic women elsewhere in southern Europe they often wore elaborate crosses as jewellery.
This small pendant is all that remains of a much larger five-part pendant ending in an elaborate matching cross. Its original design was based on 18th century aristocratic jewellery, but the use of garnets and pearls is typical of Italian traditional jewellery of the 19th century. Crosses like this were worn throughout northern and central Italy, often with matching earrings.
The original five-part pendant cross was bought for £3 8s. as part of the Castellani collection of Italian Peasant Jewellery at the International Exhibition, Paris, 1867.
This small pendant is all that remains of a much larger five-part pendant ending in an elaborate matching cross. Its original design was based on 18th century aristocratic jewellery, but the use of garnets and pearls is typical of Italian traditional jewellery of the 19th century. Crosses like this were worn throughout northern and central Italy, often with matching earrings.
The original five-part pendant cross was bought for £3 8s. 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 set with garnets and pearl |
| Brief description | Part of a gold pendant, set with pearls and garnets, Romagna (Italy), 1800-1867. |
| Physical description | Pierced gold plaque, with loop at back, set with a wired pearl in a conical mount, surrounded by flat-cut garnets. There is a hinge at the bottom for a missing cross. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions | Illegible letters. (On front; on ray between garnets.)
|
| Summary | Italian women have always loved lavish display. Even for the poorest, an impressive show of jewellery was all important. Like Catholic women elsewhere in southern Europe they often wore elaborate crosses as jewellery. This small pendant is all that remains of a much larger five-part pendant ending in an elaborate matching cross. Its original design was based on 18th century aristocratic jewellery, but the use of garnets and pearls is typical of Italian traditional jewellery of the 19th century. Crosses like this were worn throughout northern and central Italy, often with matching earrings. The original five-part pendant cross was bought for £3 8s. 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 | 352-1868 |
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| Record created | October 31, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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