Ancient Egypt

Hello, and I hope this finds all of you healthy and well.

Ancient cultures have always intrigued me. The Ancient Egyptians in particular as they seem to have accomplished so much, at a time we think of as rather primitive compared with all that our species has accomplished over the last couple of hundred years. But in their time they were amazing! And yet, those amazing civilizations fell several times over a period of 2500 years. They were finally conquered by Alexander the Great around 330 BC. One of his generals a decade or two later created a Greek-speaking dynasty. Then in 30 BC, when Cleopatra died, Egypt was annexed by the Roman Empire and their very long and prosperous run as a "super power" of their time ended. It makes me wonder how one reaches such heights, only to let it slip away somehow, into the history books and through the sands of time. I'm sure there are lessons there for us somewhere. 

So that has absolutely nothing to do with earrings! But before I made these earrings I did some reading about cats, and Bastet, in Ancient Egypt. Along the way, I also read through some of the history and the timeline of Ancient Egypt, so that's where all that came from. :) As to Bastet, she was an Ancient Egyptian Goddess, often depicted as half female/half feline. Because of her, cats in general were held in very high esteem. The penalties for injuring or killing a cat were severe. Bastet was revered for different things in different parts of Egypt at different times, from warfare to fertility and childbirth :)

The Ancient Egyptian Cats are made from Yellow Bronze by Robert Gilmore of RobertWGilmore. Such wonderful detail in a thin and light component allows a lot of room to "add to." Ancient Egyptian jewelry often included red, blue and turquoise. And I have seen some including green as well but not as frequently. 

I used really lovely slices of Lapis Lazuli that I purchased from FunkyPrettyBeads. As an aside, I believe that shop is still having a Spring sale; might be just another day or two. 

Using brass-plated tiny-link chain I hung the cats from longer pieces, and the two shorter side pieces hold blue, red and green/turquoise Czech glass beads. The center jump ring is soldered and the three lengths of chain are attached to it. I used oxidized copper wire to wrap the top, along with brass rings, red glass and tiny brass beads. They are lightweight at 0.14 oz and just over 2.5" long. Lots of movement, too. :)

I wanted to mention that I am really enjoying our two newest contributors and their jewelry. Both Lindsay and Meridy create such beautiful pieces, and I always look forward to their posts. I hope you do as well.

Enjoy the day, and the next couple of weeks. I'll see you then. Thank you!

Much Love & Joy to each of you today & every single day!

Norbel

SheFliesAgain

Ancient

Women in Ancient Times loved Awesome Earrings like we do! And very beautiful ones. Although I would imagine that those who were lucky enough to wear them must have been the elite of their time. 

Hello, and Happy October to you. Fall is my favorite time of year. I find it energizing. It's fleeting here in Michigan; we're lucky to have a small handful of sunny, cool days, but they are the best of the best when they come around. :) 

I've always enjoyed browsing images of ancient jewelry. History intrigues me. I am amazed by the beauty some were able to wear. Gemstones and gold! 

This particular image is of a pair of earrings that were made/worn in about 500 AD, during the Byzantine era, "earrings with pendant chains". It's said they were very popular during that time, but only five (5) earrings are known to have survived. There is one earring "in Baltimore," and a pair in the "Farrell Collection," each with pendant crosses, pearls and semi-precious stones. This image and the info came from the "Christie's" website, and these little lovelies fetched $15,000. 

FYI "The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire in the East during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinople." 

What an amazing find, in such beautiful condition. 500 AD! I kept the image in a folder I have titled "Design Inspiration," where I have hundreds of images of stunning jewelry, from all over, including all of our EE talents. This one I have been enamored with for quite some time. 

Rather than use them for inspiration only, I decided to re-create the design in my own way, in our timeline, :), with the materials I love to work with. And there's also the fact that gold is a bit out of my price range. :) Perhaps someday, hundreds of years from now, someone will stumble upon my earrings, and think they're a fun find. 

So here is my interpretation. 



 I chose to use a plain hoop rather than a hoop with ear wire attached. As the AEs (ancient earrings) have a pearl wrapped to the hoop, I did the same. These sweet rondelle-shaped Pearls came from TheFickleBead and I am in love with them. They're a soft peachy ivory and have decent-sized holes. These are wrapped in 22 gauge copper wire.

The beautiful, faceted blue/green stones are Apatite. The way the AEs have the emerald wrapped made me chuckle. If you look at the wire above the emerald, there appears to be a headpin wrapped around the wire holding the emerald, right? Yet at the bottom of the emerald the wire is rather wound and bunched to keep the bead on. Christie's refers to it as a "large granule above the spiral." To me it's a headpin! lol So I used headpins to hold the Apatite, and then used another to create the "spiral" and the "granule." I also chose to put it on the opposite side of the hoop as the pearl, rather than on the same side.

Rather than use a chain, I braided copper wire. I started out with a heavier gauge wire, but  it was too much. Everything I used was scaled down compared to the AEs, as far as the diameter of the wire, the hoop, the length and dimensions of the emeralds and their findings. It just looked better, and I love it. I have never braided wire before. I do know that it is something I will do more often. What a great way to change things up a bit. Hanging from the "chain" are pewter arrow charms, made by Vincent 'n Nooma of Inviciti.

So that's that! This was really one of the most fun projects I've done. Thanks so much for stopping by. We all appreciate it, as well as your comments and feedback. Have a great couple of weeks. I'll be back Oct. 18. Thank you!

Norbel
She Flies Again - my Etsy shop

Pits and Palms

Palm Jasper Earrings

Rugged looking palm jasper marquis shaped stones with their pitted surface in earthy tan and charcoal gray tones have that ancient appearance that I adore.

I thought it would be an interesting blend of textures to combine the pitted jasper stones with primitive ceramic drops from Jana Bližňáková of Happy Fish Things. Add to that, some copper wire wrapping and waxed cotton cord with seed beads in black and turquoise that pick up the colors in the artisan ceramic drops.

Gloria Ewing

Chrysalis Tribal Jewelry
Chrysalis Too on Etsy
Chrysalis Tribal Jewelry on Amazon

Spellbinder Earrings

Spellbinder Earrings

Today's earring design combines ancient looking raku lampwork glass from Bead Fairy and primitive stonewear clay discs made by At Home in Taos, with Gothic style pewter charms from Inviciti. Each element has it's own charm and casts its own spell. Together they are captivating, irresistible and spellbinding!

I really love working with components that have an old sun washed or worn look to them, and I think these earrings include all of those qualities. Their scale is a little on the large side, but they are intended to make a statement.














Gloria Ewing

Chrysalis Tribal Jewelry
Chrysalis Too on Etsy