Interesting Facts about Medieval Jewelry

Medieval Jewelry in the middle ages was not extremely popular. Although, the global contact for trade purposes led to significant economic and cultural transformations. The trade industry of Europe started progressing in the middle of the medieval times. This was the time when the concept of using jewelry gained tremendous popularity. The history of medieval jewelry dates back to pre-historic times. You will often find the use of brooches and bracelets during the early medieval era. Using valuable stones and jewelry was regarded as a symbol of status particularly in the late medieval times.

Types of Medieval Jewelry

Diverse forms of jewelry were used in the medieval ages. For instance, brooches or round fibulae were popular in the Carolingian period. Typically, brooches were curved. They featured symmetrical shapes and pearl ornaments. During the 13th and 14th centuries, the use of ring and cluster brooches were incredibly widespread. Further, you will also come across the culture of creating guilds for various professions. They were the most valuable and wealthy guilds exclusively for the profession of primitive jewelry. Many historians had recorded information regarding members of the guild and their merchandise. Proficient medieval goldsmiths exquisitely designed the jewelry. They used diverse techniques from soldering to gilding. These techniques assimilated several sheets of metal to create one large piece for further processing.

Popular Medieval Jewelry

Undeniably, brooches were among the most prevalent medieval jewelry. Though the style and composition varied during different medieval eras. For instance, the late medieval period comes with the trend of decorating belts with gems. Also, we cannot forget to mention the medieval jewelry for headgear. Isn’t it interesting?

• Vikings excelled at making detailed medieval jewelry
• During the Byzantine times, the jewelry incorporated mosaics styles
• Jewelry became the status symbol particularly among nobles
• Brooches gained immense popularity during Carolingian and Viking periods

Conclusion: Jewelry has always been a part of our cultural trends since human societies existed. From antique brooches to decorated rings, we have observed the modifications of jewelry in many ways. If you have read this far, we hope you are now familiar with medieval jewelry. Also, if you are looking forward to more information about the medieval era, give a read to The Insights into Different types of Medieval Armors.