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Articles
Classical Ancient Jewelry
The earliest known record known concerning the making of
jewelry was found in Egypt. It was here along the stone
walls of the chapel chambers of ancient tombs that the true
history of jewelry began. On these walls are reproductions
of the Egyptian lapidary at work. This craftsman was
essential to Egyptian jewelry for it was his job to cut and
engrave the many small stones found in almost all Egyptian
work. During this time, the jeweler was not only a skilled
craftsman who made ornaments for personal adornment, but a
goldsmith and engraver of metals for any purpose, including
the minting of coins. Although the beginnings of jewelry as
we know it can be traced to this time, Egyptians also had
characteristic forms of jeweled ornaments for which we have
no equivalent. The pectoral is one of these.
It consisted of a breast ornament suspended from the neck by
a ribbon or chain. These have been referred to as "portable
shrines for the gods," for they were often in the design of
various deities. Pectorals were made of bronze and covered
in gold leaf, with the finest crafted of pure gold. Lapis,
carnelian and turquoise were sometimes in-laid.
Another important Egyptian jewelry form, with which we have
little experience, is the headdress. This often spectacular
ornament took the form of an outer wig. Cleopatra is
frequently pictured wearing a headdress of long flexible
strings of gold beads or medallions of jewels falling
loosely over the shoulders. They were held in place by a
gold head band.
The Egyptian jewelers did show initiative and creativity in
many areas, but the largest part of their work consisted of
making amulets and talismans. They were not the first to
invest their ornaments with powers of magic, but the
jewelers of Egypt fully developed this aspect. This custom
of wearing amulets seems to have been used since earliest
times. Their first known use was to wrap them in with
mummies as guardians or protectors of the dead. This then
spread to the protection of the living.
Amulet
most often represent the receptacle or the jewel which
contains a charm. In Egypt, sha-sha or beads were essential
in the realm of amulets. The base word for the naming of
beads was sha, Egyptian word for luck. Anyone in the
Egyptian order could wear beads, the type being dependent on
their wealth. The materials ranged from pearls to pottery
clay, so even the poorest worker could posses a string of
beads.
Egyptian ornamental devices always had the equal importance
of a meaning. The goldsmiths’ designs were symbolic. These
symbols, according to popular belief, exercised a magic
power on behalf of the wearer. Symbols were produced in a
varied assortment. A reproduction of the human-headed hawk
represented the union of the body, soul, spirit and the
heart. Eternity was symbolized by the eye of Horos. The fly
with a human head gave the wearer the power to ascent up to
heaven. Other popular designs were the sacred hawk, the hand
of the goddess nut, the ankh, the nefer, the lotus flower
and the falcon. The oldest amulet was the sistrum, a
protection against evil. These amulets were mounted on gold
and most often worn suspended around the neck by chains.
Gemstones were also attributed with supernatural powers
according to their colors, characteristics and the mystic
legends associated with them. Green jasper was an assurance
of rain, agates were protection against spider bites and
thunderstorms. To keep one free from serpent attacks, lapis
lazuli was worn.
The piece of jewelry produced by the Egyptians which has had
the most affect is the kheptra or kheper, which stems from
the word meaning "to become, to come into being". These are
better known to modern man as the shape of the little beetle
called the scarab. They came in many forms, including gold,
being modeled in clay and glazed with green or carved from
stone. The stones could range from soapstone, serpentine,
lapis lazuli, hematite, carnelian, jasper or whatever gem
its owner could afford.
The
scarab had significance
as a religious symbol in Egypt and soon spread into
Phoenicia, Etruria and Greece, where it became a timeless
motif of design for jewelry. Egyptians dealt only with soft
stones, while the Assyrians could take advantage of a harder
surface, since they had the drills lacking in Egypt. The
form of the beetle was carved into the top of the stone,
while the flat base was carved the name of the owner, the
reigning king and symbols of certain deities.
When the scarab was set in a ring it possessed a
particularly efficient combination of desirable uses,
especially in the realm of the amulet.
Scarabs served this
purpose before they reached the point of development where
they took the first step toward being used as signets. It
was this instance intaglio was developed. This is a method
of cutting, where the stone is hollowed out instead of the
design being raised above the surface. This aided the change
from the scarab being a simple amulet to its use as a seal.
The seals were used to stamp any property or document with
the owner’s mark. These were then bound to him and he to
them by a link of magic.
These signets were first worn on a woolen cord. Soon a
replacement was found by using wire, with its advantage of
being more durable. When wire was first in use, it was not
drawn, but made by beating out gold, silver or bronze and
then cutting them into strips. These were then lengthened
and shaped by further hammering. In this way the wire was
made flexible. Later the wire was a band of metal, shaped as
a rather stiff hoop. The bezel, making up one side, was
where the gem was set or the metal enlarged to hold an
inscription.
Egyptian jewelry making reached its peak, especially in gold
smithy, during the twelfth dynasty from 1991-1786 BC.
jewelry became more colorful, for in addition to stones and
metals, glass came into use.
It became popular immediately, for as mentioned previously,
color was an important aspect of jewelry and more colors
became available through the use of glass. Glass, when used
as enamel, took the place of stones and further required no
hand grinding, which was perhaps the most laborious part of
jewelry making. Along with glass as enamels, came glass used
in flower-like mosaics, similar to the Italian millefiori.
This is a method wherein tubes of glass are bundled together
in a rod, drawn out and pieces cut from it. The pieces were
then set with the cut side showing, resembling a small
flower. The Egyptians popularized this by placing the glass
in rings. |
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