Greek Jewellery
Neohellenic Jewellery


The epic of Neohellenic jewellers was written in these times. Silver was the medium par excellence, from which were wrought significant signed and anonymous works, resplendent ecclesiastical silverware as well as intricate secular ornaments, mirroring the aesthetic preferences of different sections of society.
Jewellery making was essentially a workshop an associated with guild organization. In addition to itinerant craftsmen who travelled throughout Ottoman-held Greece, renowned centres of silver and goldsmithing developed: in Epirus at Kalarrytes, Synako, Ioannina, Metsovo and Elvasan in Nonhern Epirus - one oI the main streets of which was known as `the avenue of Greek goldsmiths'; in Macedonia at Monastiri and Nymphaion; in Thrace at Adrianople; in Thessaly; in Central Greece at Lamia; in the Peloponnese at Stemnitsa.
Fig 4 'Kambanes' (Bells) from Kos, 18th century. Sumptuous long earrings that frame the face as in the Byzantine imperial 'perpendulia'. Ornate compositions are fashioned in delicate gold filigree and perforated technique. Athens Benaki Museum, inv. no. Exp. 265.

Fig 5 The old bridal costume of Kos, reconstitued from various garments and accessories. Athens Benaki Museum. Fig 6 Bridal costume from Kastellorizo. Athens Benaki Museum.

Fig 7 Bridal costume from Astypalaia with polychrome embroidery on the sleeves and hem of the shift, the gold-embroidered silk headscarf and gold-embroidered slippers. The Byzantine tradition is apparent in the impressive headdress decorated with gold wire embroidery and seed pearls. Athens Benaki Museum.


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