Button
1800-1850 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Lapland and Iceland are the most remote areas of north-west Europe. Their traditional jewellery retains many medieval characteristics lost elsewhere.
Women in Iceland wore large buttons, typically in sets of three, to hold their decorative aprons in place at the waistband. These buttons are always hollow, and can be round, hemispherical, or drum-shaped. They often have a pendent leaf hanging from the front.
Buttons were an important element of women's traditional dress throughout the Nordic region. Leaf pendants are typical of both Icelandic and Sami (Lapp) dress, but Icelandic buttons usually have richer decoration, often of filigree, as here. The Icelandic name viravirkis-knappr means a filigree button. The pattern of rings within circles on this button is common in Iceland, but is also found on Sami and Russian buttons.
Women in Iceland wore large buttons, typically in sets of three, to hold their decorative aprons in place at the waistband. These buttons are always hollow, and can be round, hemispherical, or drum-shaped. They often have a pendent leaf hanging from the front.
Buttons were an important element of women's traditional dress throughout the Nordic region. Leaf pendants are typical of both Icelandic and Sami (Lapp) dress, but Icelandic buttons usually have richer decoration, often of filigree, as here. The Icelandic name viravirkis-knappr means a filigree button. The pattern of rings within circles on this button is common in Iceland, but is also found on Sami and Russian buttons.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Gilded sheet silver with applied filigree decoration |
| Brief description | Silver-gilt spherical button (viravirkis-knappr) with applied filigree decoration and pendant leaf, Iceland, 1800-1850. |
| Physical description | Spherical silver-gilt button covered all over with granules and applied rings of twisted wire. There is a loop in the centre of the front, from which hangs a stylised leaf. |
| Dimensions |
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| Summary | Lapland and Iceland are the most remote areas of north-west Europe. Their traditional jewellery retains many medieval characteristics lost elsewhere. Women in Iceland wore large buttons, typically in sets of three, to hold their decorative aprons in place at the waistband. These buttons are always hollow, and can be round, hemispherical, or drum-shaped. They often have a pendent leaf hanging from the front. Buttons were an important element of women's traditional dress throughout the Nordic region. Leaf pendants are typical of both Icelandic and Sami (Lapp) dress, but Icelandic buttons usually have richer decoration, often of filigree, as here. The Icelandic name viravirkis-knappr means a filigree button. The pattern of rings within circles on this button is common in Iceland, but is also found on Sami and Russian buttons. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 622-1872 |
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| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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