n. Filigree /filligree/:From the Latin ‘Filum’, meaning ‘Thread’, and ‘Granum’ meaning ‘Seed’. Filigree is the art of curling, twisting and plaiting fine pliable threads of precious metals, and uniting them at their points of contact by means of gold or Silver solder.
Introduction
Perfected over millennia, incorporating the ancient techniques and styles of vanished civilizations, Filigree is without a doubt one of the oldest and most beautiful art forms known to man.
Unlike the mass of jewelry produced today Filigree jewelry is totally handcrafted, calling for hours of concentration on the part of its maker. The knowledge behind Filigree’s meticulous creation, passed down from generation to generation, remains a closely guarded secret kept in the hands of lapidary masters stretching from the islands of the Mediterranean sea to the shores of East India.
The Celts And Filigree
After a long absence, Filigree reestablished itself in northern Europe with the Saxons, Britons and Celts who were from an early period extremely skilful in several kinds of jewelry metalwork. In fact, the Celtic jewelry perfected between the 10th and 11th Centuries in Ireland displays more thought in its design and intricate patterns than any other period in Filigree’s history. Two examples are the infamous Tara brooch, a ring fastener with a pin for piercing and holding clothing in place, and the stunning two-handled chalice called the Ardagh cup. Irish Filigree is designed in such a way that one thread can be traced through the entirety of a network of complex coils and knots, the intricate threads appear and disappear without breaking continuity or balance, finishing by being incorporated into the head or tail of a serpent or monster.
The Renaissance & Filigree
The 15th and 16th Centuries marked the dispersion of the somber Middle Ages, and the rise of the Italian ‘Renaissance’, meaning ‘Rebirth’, expressing for the first time the values of the modern world. Artists and artisans of this period found their inspiration in the revival of ancient Greece and Rome, and jewelry became once again an integral part of dress. Solemn religious subjects were gradually replaced by classical and naturalistic themes and Filigree and enameled jewelry combined with faceted gemstones were for the first time united in sculptured pendants, brooches, necklaces and chains.
The 17th To 18th Centuries And Filigree
However, in the 17th Century due to refined methods of faceting gems the emphasis moved once more from precious metals to gemstones, and the diamond became the preferred item for jewelry. The 18th Century brought with it industrial development and mass production. Cheaper materials were utilized, in addition to gold and semi-precious gemstones, including base-metal alloys, paste to make imitation gemstones, steel and cast iron. With these cheaper methods of production jewelry techniques changed their emphasis from the artisans to less skilled mechanical processes of stamping and cutting out patterns and settings. It was during the end of the 19th Century that Peter Carl Faberge, jeweler to the Russian Tsars, reintroduced an exacting craftsmanship into jewelry design. Similar to the artisan jewelers of the Renaissance, Faberge specialized in the contrast of colors and materials, and his most original designs are those that combine gold Filigree, and colored gems such as alexandrite named after the Tsar Alexander on his birthday in 1830.
The 19th Century And Filigree
By the late 19th Century, a counter-culture movement in the decorative arts challenged the austerity of Victorian society. Art Nouveau burst upon Europe and America with a romantic glory of swirling dainty lines. Figures of girls with dreamy expressions and swirling hair, dragonflies and peacocks with iridescent colors and stylized floral themes dominated jewelry. Filigree, enameling and Pliqué A Jour, the pulling of enamel through wire to give it a stained glass look, were used and established jewelers like Louis Comfort Tiffany although continuing to use diamonds and pearls reintroduced classical gemstones like opals and moonstones.
The Edwardian Epoch & Filigree
After the death of Queen Victoria her son, Edward VII, became king of England. In comparison to the austerity of Victorian England Edward’s reign marked a joyous return to elegance in styling, clothing and jewelry. Edwardian jewelry coincided with the Art Nouveau movement, and the delicate Filigree work that could now be fashioned echoed the laces and feathers worn by Edwardian ladies of the period. Diamonds and pearls were worn in profusion, either alone or with colored gemstones. Because of the metal strength of platinum, yellow gold was replaced as the metal of choice for jewelry. Silver and white gold, were used for the first time in Filigree and it was everywhere from brooches, bracelets, earrings, tiaras and beautiful delicate and lacy diamond rings, and with king Edwards love of elegance men's jewelry came into its own.
Filigree Sterling Silver Jewelry Through History Part I – 3000 B.C. To 400 A.D.
Forms of marking precious metal objects were around from the Byzantine period in the early part of the first millennium A.D. However, it was under the rule of king Edward I of England, known as 'Longshanks' due to his size, that hallmarking was first established.
The term 'Hallmark' comes from 'Mark of the Hall of Goldsmiths' in London, who in 1327 were the first official 'Assay' hallmarking office decreed by parliament to control the standard of precious metals circulating in the British Isles. To this day they still operate one of four authorized assay offices in Britain.
Before items made of precious metals such as silver, gold or platinum are stamped with an 'Assay's' hallmark they undergo rigorous testing to prove whether or not the metal purity measures up to the established standards. In fact, the word 'Assay' is derived from the French word meaning to test, trail or examine.
The basic method of assaying, also known as the 'Cupellation' process, was first introduced by the ancient Egyptians. The process starts when a small sample of silver is removed from the object to be tested, which is then carefully weighed and measured. The sample of silver is then placed in a 'Cupel', a small receptacle made of bone ash, along with a small quantity of lead. This is then placed in a furnace and heated to a high temperature with a draught of air flowing over it. The lead and any other base metals contained in the silver sample are either oxidized or absorbed into the 'Cupel', leaving only the pure silver behind.
The remains of the silver are then weighed and measured and compared to the initial weight of the sample. The 'Cupellation' process is the most accurate method for determining metal purity and is the standard technique practiced today. Upon meeting the required standards of sterling silver the item of sterling is stamped with the appropriate hallmark.
Until quite recently, most Hallmarks were 'Struck' using steel punches. The punches are produced in various proportions, appropriate for petite pieces of jewelry to hefty items of silver ware. Punches are made in straight shanks for normal punching with a hammer, or ring shanks used with a press to mark rings.
The trouble with traditional punching is that the procedure can misshape the form of the jewelry, resulting in the article having to be reworked after hallmarking is completed. For this reason, unfinished items of jewelry are often sent to the assay office where cuts-offs are taken and tested from the articles before hallmarking is executed.
Today, a new method of marking is being employed using laser technology, which burns the hallmark on to the jewelry, something which is especially valuable for delicate items which would otherwise be damaged by the traditional technique of punching. This procedure of hallmarking uses high power lasers to dissolve material from the metal surface. There are two methods of laser marking, 2D and 3D, 2 dimensional marking, which burns the outline of the hallmarks into the object, while 3 dimensional marking simulates the traditional punching.
Often the hallmark is made up of several elements including: the type of metal, the maker and the year of the marking. In 1999 a new format of English hallmarking on objects of sterling silver was initiated consisting of a maker's mark, the assay office insignia and a 925 symbol. Optional extra marks are the 'Lion Passant', the UK sign of sterling silver, and the date letter stamp.
The standardizing of the date letter sequence, shared by all four remaining assay offices in Birmingham, Edinburgh, London and Sheffield, were introduced to bring the UK system closer in line with other European Union standards. However, the problem remains that many countries throughout the world have different standards and specifications that vary considerably, making it difficult for one country to accept another's hallmarking as equivalent to its own.
With the advent of globalization, 'Free trade' and the Internet, finding the problematic solution to the standardization of world hallmarking has become increasingly important. In 1972, the EFTA (European Fair Trade Association) consisting of Austria, Finland, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom held the 'Vienna Convention,' where the first European hallmarking laws for precious metals were put into force.
The convention enables specially designated assay offices throughout member countries of the EFTA to apply, after testing, a common control mark to articles of precious metals including sterling silver in accordance with the Convention. The articles bearing the Convention marks, called CCM: Common Control Marks, are accepted without further testing or marking by the assay office of any destination country that is an EFTA member.
Although this system is not worldwide as yet, Denmark, Ireland, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands have since joined the Convention. And Bahrain, France, Israel, Lithuania, Poland, Spain and several Eastern European countries have shown an interest in the Convention and are preparing for application.
David-john Turner has sinced written about articles on various topics from Jewelry, Silver Jewelry. Written for SilverShake, an online retailer of filigree jewelry