I don’t think I’ve written about this yet, but I stumbled across a very interesting book called “Russian Applied Art of Tenth-Thirteenth Centuries” by B. A. Rybakov, Published by Aurora Art Publishers, Leningrad, no date given (1970’s?). It is 128 pages long and has 161 color and black and white plates.
It is written in both English and Russian and contains many pieces of 12th century jewelry. It was strange to find so much pictured after ‘Mediaeval European Jewellery’ said that it was an era without much in the way of extant pieces.
Apparently much of the jewelry found in Russia was buried in order to hide it from the Mongol invasions of the early 13th century. Pictured are head ornaments, torques (remember the quote from the other jewelry book mentioning them?), earrings, glass beads, necklaces (with a cool fleur de lys shaped metal bead one), pendants, barmy (massive necklaces, and this is also the name for the Russian round collar), rings, diadems, bracelets, amulets, and even a piece of 12th century pearled embroidery.
While it is difficult to say how much of this type of decoration made its way further west into Germany, France or England, the pieces that are clearly of Byzantine influence might indicate that something similar could show up at least in parts of Europe.
Ever hunting,
~ Katrine / Katherine Barich
Message #766, January 29, 2003
Katrine, you are a dear to keep telling us about these books. If you should happen to come across stuff on 12th-century jewellery worn in the Mediterranean region, I would love to hear about it.
Many thanks.
~ Ingvild Josefsdatter / Nancy Spies
Arelate Studio
http://www.weavershand.com/ArelateStudio.html
Message #767, January 30, 2003
Nancy, you might like
“The Mosaics of Norman Sicily” by Otto Demus, Hacker Art Books, 1988, ISBN 0-87817-310-2. It
has a nice selection of art that I hadn’t
seen before, and you might find
something of interest.
~ Katrine / Katherine Barich
Message #768, January 31, 2003
Interesting!
My personal jeweler 🙂 Glum Kveldulfson was
researching 12th c stuff for making my
medalian as authentic as possible. He told me he found out that Norman women at least “did not wear earrings, and
necklaces (rarely worn) consisted of a
medalian on a ribbon, or just a chain by itself” But mostly just annular brooches were worn by the ladies. He told
me who wore the earrings – I can’t
remember what he said – saracens maybe?
I’ll see if I can pin some info down
about it.
~ Aénor d’Anjou / Kirsten Wienand Vaughan
Message #771, January 31, 2003
Yes, the Arabic women had wonderful earrings, all gold and filigreed and pearled.
~ Ingvild Josefsdatter / Nancy Spies
Message #772, February 2, 2003
And rings. Rings and
brooches appear to be the jewellery worn by women in the twelfth century, Oh
and the clasps for holding the cloak.
One of the few mentions of earrings is from Orderic Vitalis,
who says that their monastery cook, a Saracen convert, wears an earring.
~ Rowena / Belinda Sibly
Message #773, February 2, 2003
What does Goddard have to say about earrings? (My apprentice just took my copy to write up some
documentation!) She is just about our best period source.
~ Jessamyn / Grace Morris
Message #774, February 3, 2003
…his sources said
that French ladies of the 12c didn’t wear earrings but Saracens did …
There is a nice pair of Saracenic earrings (you can tell by the Kufic script that makes up the filigree work) in:
The Art of medieval Spain, A.D. 500-1200.
Publication: New York : Metropolitan Museum of Art : Distributed by H.N. Abrams, 1993
~ Katrine / Katherine Barich
Message #791, February 10, 2003