Hi everybody,
I aknowledge the fact that ethnic refers nowadays to whatever comes from the "non-white" world, i.e. the world except europe, western russia and north america.
I had the chance to read some books dealing with jewelry and adornment from very diverse regions of western europe (bavaria, greece, tyrol, northern scandinavia, ukraine, corsisa, the alps, andalucia, holland.....) and the least i can say is that they are very attractive without being too much into the trends of urban europe at the time they were made.
They keep a very strong countryside feeling in them with many times, religious (catholic, saints cult..) beliefs being highlighted. they were shared by ethnic groups as well and were often found at a very limited geographical places and not widespread over larger areas, cities or countries.
Why do you think collectors are turning their back to these pieces?
Do you think that they could be engulfed into the wider ethnic jewelry family?
Any collectors around with some pictures, insights, information?
Give us your thoughts about that.
Warmest wishes
Replies
Norwegian ethnic jewelry, called Sølje that are worn on the traditional costume Bunad. Features that are still used in Sølje design are found in brooches from the Iron Age. Most Norwegians still use the Bunad on several occasions, like weddings and for celebrating the constitution day. Many families have Søljer that are inherited from mother to daughter. And often a female child is given a Sølje and a silver spoon from relatives as a "birth gift". There are a lot of viking age brooches/Søljer in Scandinavian museums.
Each region in Norway has its own style of Bunad, and Søljer that goes with it. Some Søljer can be used with several Bunads.
Bergen Bunad.
This is my birth gift Sølje.
This is my mothers birth gift Sølje.
I'll post more pictures on my page, including the birth gift Sølje from my great grand mother (1882).
So a new project for 2012......
in the planning, but goes a little something like......
A world map..
clickable by country.
each country has a page to post items of Adornment typical of that place, with articles discussion space and forum.....etc etc
I have already spoken to people with collections from three european origins, and hope that such a webspace will bring forth others to contribute.......
maybe the answer to the original question is out there waiting to be gathered!!!
thoughts are welcome!!!
S x
Isabel, - I for one will most certainly welcome a look at such Portuguese pieces. I add, also, that one element of ethnic jewellery is by definition that it has a "regional" appearance, as it expresses the beliefs, cultural values and practices etc of a particular community in a particular place. In any case ... please show us the pics!!
Hello Ayis!
Related to this I can tell you that in the north part of Portugal we have strong traditions related to jewellery, still made and in use by many women ( cities and countryside)...this comes from a past of many centuries and it was the richness and the dowry of many women...As soon as possible I will post some photos...I think you'll appreciate them, as I do...And if we can not describe them as ethnic, we can call them regional...
Thank you for posting this discussion...
Another post in this ongoing discussion about WESTERN ethnic jewellery. In Holland it was worn rather longer than in most European countries, by all accounts, so I shall see what I can dig up about Dutch regional/ethnic jewellery. Here is one website with just two typical pieces - but all in all there is a paucity of material on the web, showing that this is increasingly a topic "of the past" ... Website http://antique-jewelry-information.blogspot.com/2008/07/regional-du....
Bridget, I for one would dearly like to have more Dutch (in you case Frisian) ethnic jewellery, but although I have gone to considerable trouble over the years I have found it difficult to find good pieces: they are rare, certainly on the market, and they cost a lot of money, too (not surprisingly) if they are of a high standard. As a general observation, it is sometimes argued here that ethnic jewellery collectors for European jewelry don't exist, or that we somehow "reject" it. I don't believe there is any evidence for this claim. Certainly the few people I have come across who do sell pieces in this category seemed to be able to sell them quite easily, and could just not find enough - I think THAT is the problem, not lack of interest. There just is not really the supply that you need for a "true market"!!
You are absolutely right. I was born in Friesland, in The Netherlands and I was brought up seeing a lot of old Friesian costume silver in particular around me as my parents were in one of those traditional dance groups so popular all over Europe. There is a wealth of traditional costumes and their adornments everywhere. Ethnic richness galore. Why are we turning our backs? I think we have forgotten what is our own and we don't know what is our neighbour's.
I was blessed by the fact my parents were in one of these groups. To this day I could recognise pretty well where anyone in Europe would hail from going by their traditional costumes. Like everywhere else Friesian people's adornments told a story about that person and the surrounding culture. I think they are sought after, but they are expensive, and probably more of an 'insider' interest?
Like with all "Ethnic" jewellery, adornments, art etcetera we should try to keep the thing and it's story together so I am aware I feel protective about my cultural heritage. I have tried to google a little about this subject and realise there is very little indeed to find of interest. That does not mean it is not out there. now, there's a challenge!
I think I should take on this gauntlet!
Bridget (or Sybricht for anyone who recognises a good Friesian first name when they see one!)
I also like Patti's post, Sarah. I think she explains very well what kind of thing most of us look for in "ethnic" jewellery, and also that we crave for it because largely the most "advanced" societies have lost such values, and no longer use the artistic items expressing them, as ethnic jewellery does: for it is not just what is aesthetic which we look for, or where the jewellery was made, but the cultural content underlying the jewellery which expresses it. Much Western jewellery today (not formerly) looks pretty much the same everywhere, and expresses little of such content and context as she mentions: it is bland and largely "empty" even if pretty. Exceptions, in most of the West, are a number of pieces made by artistically active and expressive contemporary jewellers who look further and more deeply than the mass of industrial producers. There is a distinct connection between what we wish to live with and what is "ethnicity" or "ethnic". The Free Dictionary on-line (good enough) defines "ethnic" quite satisfactorily, I feel, as "Of, relating to, or characteristic of a sizable group of people sharing a common and distinctive racial, national, religious, linguistic, or cultural heritage". Notice the word "or" here, at the end: it is not necessary for EVERY criterion to be met for something to be ethnically distinctive, but generally the members of a particular group will indeed for the most part share at least a NUMBER of the features mentioned, i.e, a "racial, national, religious, linguistic, or cultural heritage". And, for jewellery to be "ethnic", it will express at least a number of these facets so as to be distinct and different from other ethnic jewellery. What Patti observes, I think, is that we long for a deep, meaningful and emotionally satisfying identity of culturally distinctive behaviour which, as it happens, the West has largely lost, and notably so because, there, many of the features which make a culture something distinctive - especially something deep and meaningful - have increasingly gone missing.
Applauding Patti's post..
"I think people long for the traditional elements of culture, large, loving families, special recipes, unifying religion, closeness to nature, --- so many other things which are fast disappearing -- and the collection of costume and jewels from traditional peoples is their way of expressing this longing and desire."
This ethos resonates for me thank you
i DON'T KNOW JUST WHERE TO PLACE REPLIES IN THIS DISCUSSION! Anyway: in relation to the origin of beads I would say that to most people their ethnicity would be defined according to their country of origin. For example, if European beads are used in West Papua, most commentators on the jewellery containing such beads would point out that the beads are European. They definitely would NOT be thought of as "West Papuan". Usually, in the case of Oceania, the loose term "trade beads" is used, SPECIFICALLY TO INDICATE THAT THESE CAME TO THE COUNTRY FROM OTHER COUNTRIES, AND WERE *NOT* PRODUCED IN THE COUNTRY WHERE THEY ENDED UP AS PART OF THE JEWELLERY WORN THERE. Any other notion would, of course, lead to great confusion: people would come to think that West Papuans etc MADE things which they in fact merely INCORPORATED OR USED.
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