Figure of the Day: A Fool's Head, the Jet Jester, 1550-1700

Spanish Jet Figure, 1550-1700
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Small figures of jet (a particularly dense type of coal which can be carved and polished) like the one pictured above, especially in Spain, were created to seems to signify that a pilgrim had completed his or her journey, and reached the shrine of St James (the patron Saint of Spain) at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. This was a trek which pilgrims made for well over the course of six hundred years, from the twelfth to the eighteenth century.


Many jet figures like this seem to have been drilled with holes to form beads for rosaries. From the earliest times, medicinal and magical qualities were assigned to jet which could be found in different parts of Europe (as well as North America).

This jet piece, which is larger than most, represents a fool's head and its precise function is uncertain. Perhaps it was the pommel of a jester's stick and may have been used during the “Feasts of Fools” when “the holiest offices and orders were made matters of the lightest jesting.”

The grinning portrait head has stylized tightly-curled hair, a large nose, wrinkled forehead and a ruff-like collar set on a bulbous base, on which are carved three shells. A smooth disc is carved on the back. It was made in Spain between 1550 and 1700.

Mastery of Design: The Salamanca Pendant, 1800-1870

Pendant
Salamanca Spain
1800-1870
The Victoria & Albert Museum

It’s not surprising, given Spain’s highly-Catholic history, that Roman Catholic imagery would be incorporated into all art forms. Many jewels made in Spain from the Seventeenth to Nineteenth Centuries featured religious themes along with more secular designs.

This cross-shaped pendant is a good example. Made in the Salamanca region of Spain, the pendant is a great representation of the sort of filigree work which made the region famous. While the piece is dominated by the cross, it is suspended from a tulip, and this from a filigree bow—a popular fashion of the early-to-mid Nineteenth Century. Similarly, as was the style of the time, the pendant is made in three sections—each encrusted with seed and baroque pearls attached by thin gold wire. The whole was worn on a ribbon, tied around the throat.

The work of an unknown jeweler, the piece dates between 1800 and 1870.

 

Figure of the Day: A Fool's Head, the Jet Jester, 1550-1700

Spanish Jet Figure, 1550-1700
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Small figures of jet (a particularly dense type of coal which can be carved and polished) like the one pictured above, especially in Spain, were created to seems to signify that a pilgrim had completed his or her journey, and reached the shrine of St James (the patron Saint of Spain) at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. This was a trek which pilgrims made for well over the course of six hundred years, from the twelfth to the eighteenth century.


Many jet figures like this seem to have been drilled with holes to form beads for rosaries. From the earliest times, medicinal and magical qualities were assigned to jet which could be found in different parts of Europe (as well as North America).

This jet piece, which is larger than most, represents a fool's head and its precise function is uncertain. Perhaps it was the pommel of a jester's stick and may have been used during the “Feasts of Fools” when “the holiest offices and orders were made matters of the lightest jesting.”

The grinning portrait head has stylized tightly-curled hair, a large nose, wrinkled forehead and a ruff-like collar set on a bulbous base, on which are carved three shells. A smooth disc is carved on the back. It was made in Spain between 1550 and 1700.

History's Runway: A Pair of Painted Spanish Gloves, 1800-1820

Gloves
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This pair of women's gloves of cream kid leather is printed with a neo-classical design printed in black outline which was then and hand-painted. The gloves come from Spain and date to between 1800 and 1820. Probably made for export to the U.K., the gloves epitomize the trend of the era for neoclassical iconography.


Furthermore, gloves of this style were very fashionable in England at the early part of the Nineteenth Century. Many such gloves originated in Spain. The origins of this pair are clear by the caption beneath the image which reads, “'Venus y las tres Gracias.”

As the name would suggest, the image depicts Venus and the three Graces (Thalia, Aglaia and Euphrosine) together with Cupid and reminds the wearer of the idea that beauty and love will disarm and triumph over force.

Gloves were a customary gift and one of the few tokens that etiquette decreed a gentleman could, with propriety, present to a lady who was not his wife.

Mastery of Design: The Salamanca Pendant, 1800-1870

Pendant
Salamanca Spain
1800-1870
The Victoria & Albert Museum

It’s not surprising, given Spain’s highly-Catholic history, that Roman Catholic imagery would be incorporated into all art forms. Many jewels made in Spain from the Seventeenth to Nineteenth Centuries featured religious themes along with more secular designs.

This cross-shaped pendant is a good example. Made in the Salamanca region of Spain, the pendant is a great representation of the sort of filigree work which made the region famous. While the piece is dominated by the cross, it is suspended from a tulip, and this from a filigree bow—a popular fashion of the early-to-mid Nineteenth Century. Similarly, as was the style of the time, the pendant is made in three sections—each encrusted with seed and baroque pearls attached by thin gold wire. The whole was worn on a ribbon, tied around the throat.

The work of an unknown jeweler, the piece dates between 1800 and 1870.

 

Figure of the Day: A Fool's Head, the Jet Jester, 1550-1700

Spanish Jet Figure, 1550-1700
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Small figures of jet (a particularly dense type of coal which can be carved and polished) like the one pictured above, especially in Spain, were created to seems to signify that a pilgrim had completed his or her journey, and reached the shrine of St James (the patron Saint of Spain) at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.  This was a trek which pilgrims made for well over the course of six hundred years, from the twelfth to the eighteenth century.

Many jet figures like this seem to have been drilled with holes to form beads for rosaries.  From the earliest times, medicinal and magical qualities were assigned to jet which could be found in different parts of Europe (as well as North America).

This jet piece, which is larger than most, represents a fool's head and its precise function is uncertain. Perhaps it was the pommel of a jester's stick and may have been used during the “Feasts of Fools” when “the holiest offices and orders were made matters of the lightest jesting.”

 The grinning portrait head has stylized tightly-curled hair, a large nose, wrinkled forehead and a ruff-like collar set on a bulbous base, on which are carved three shells. A smooth disc is carved on the back.  It was made in Spain between 1550 and 1700.

Mastery of Design: The Lion Segreant Diamond Brooch, 1750

Pendant Slide
Cordoba, Spain, 1750
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Marked with a symbol of a lion segreant, meaning a winged lion with both forelegs raised, this slide and pendant of gold, table-cut and rose-cut diamonds was made in Cordoba Spain. The slide takes the form of a bow with two foliated segments below, the lowest a cross.

Object of the Day: Museum Edition: A Pair of Painted Spanish Gloves, 1800-1820

Gloves
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This pair of women's gloves of cream kid leather is printed with a neo-classical design printed in black outline which was then and hand-painted. The gloves come from Spain and date to between 1800 and 1820. Probably made for export to the U.K., the gloves epitomize the trend of the era for neoclassical iconography.


Furthermore, gloves of this style were very fashionable in England at the early part of the Nineteenth Century. Many such gloves originated in Spain. The origins of this pair are clear by the caption beneath the image which reads, “'Venus y las tres Gracias.”

As the name would suggest, the image depicts Venus and the three Graces (Thalia, Aglaia and Euphrosine) together with Cupid and reminds the wearer of the idea that beauty and love will disarm and triumph over force.

Gloves were a customary gift and one of the few tokens that etiquette decreed a gentleman could, with propriety, present to a lady who was not his wife.