Schmuck zum Gwand. ländliche Bijouteriewaren aus dem Bayerischen Nationalmuseum München

Jewellery Worn with Peasant Costume from the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum München

Chokers and rosaries, bodice chains and hairpins, watch-chains with trinkets and rings set with staghorn - they are jewellery worn with peasant costume, beginning in the 17th century when the status of the rural population was rising. Often modelled on the jewellery worn by the landed classes, peasant jewellery developed a wide variety of distinctive forms and motifs of its own, each attuned to the local dress. Such pieces are worked in delicate silver, horn or leather and - when available - set with semiprecious stones such as garnets. Peasant jewellery often has the character of talismans or amulets. The collection of peasant jewellery owned by the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum München is one of the largest in any German museums. The pieces to be shown date from the 19th century.-2016-2016