Contemporized Etruscan Collar and Vestment  

The COLLECTIONS
Contemporized Etruscan Jewelry

Etruscan Collar and Vestment

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The Etruscan Collar

During the middle and latter part of the 1800's, there were major archaeological projects all over the classical world, including Rome and the Italian peninsula. The beauty and craftsmanship of Etruscan jewelry had gone largely unnoticed and unacknowledged after 500 AD, until this time. These archaeological projects, and the wealth of artifacts and jewelry they uncovered, sparked the public's imagination, triggering Revival Styles in architecture, art, fashion and jewelry. Etruscan jewelry experienced revival styles in the late 1800's, the 1920's, the 1950's and the 1980's.

The Etruscan Collar pictured above is an Etruscan Revival Piece from the 20th century. Like the pieces associated with all Revival Styles, there was a tendency to copy original Etruscan jewelry components, and not to contemporize them. This piece is no exception.

With my contemporized versions of this Etruscan Collar, I've used bead weaving techniques (ndebele stitch and petersburg chain stitch) to get a more dimensional effect, stronger color play, and a more contemporary sense of fashion and wearability.

The pieces shown use Miyuki cubes, seed beads and delicas, with 14KT, gold filled, sterling silver, and antiqued copper chain, clasps and other findings. With some pieces, I include artist-created handmade lampwork beads.