Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1890-01-03
Daily gas1e
STORY OF THE BRACELET.

STORY OF THE BRACELET.
A TRINKET THAT HOLDS A R0-
MANTIc PLACE IN HISTORY.
One of tho Most Ancient Of Jewels-Ih
Career In Franoe-Onoe Worn Upon the
Ankle As Well - the wrist-Forty-nvs
Years Devoted to q Collection.
The Moniteur de La Bijouterie ct de Thor
logerie deplores that it's own government tthe
FRENCH permits valuable private collections
to be sold at auction and drift apart in this
manner, for the want Of funds to acquire
them for the state. The English museums,
1t says, more richly endowed than theirs,
hardly ever permit a chance to escape them
to buy whole collections; for instance, that
Of Kendngton, In London, has bought at
high figure three or four hundred pieces OF
rare iewelry, constituting complete history
Of the bracelet The owner OF this collection.
Sir Harris Grant, had spent forty-five yearsin
collecting it, and the London journals speak
"a N ulRu P dSoos ~ "ooS . 80" 49, So~t
described in an Frenchs art review.
The history of the bracelet is a chapter Of
the history Of coquetry. 1t is one Of the most
ancient of jewels. Among the Iraelites, the
gold bracelet was used alike by the two
sexes; when Juda encoupters Thamar, the
latter asks In exchange Of favors, his staff,
bis ring and his bracelet. When Saul had
persisted by bis own sword. q warrior despoils
him of the bracelets, with which his arms are
covered. "For the construction Of the taber-
nacle,n 1t is said in the Exodus, ''both men
and women offered their jeweary, among
which were quantities Of rich bracelets"
The Greeks and Romans also wore brace
lets. After time the latter abstained from
wearing them daily; they were conferred as
o mark of distinction, as a souvenir Of some
great act, and the possessor guarded them
consequently as glorious decorations, and con-
tented himself with suspending them upon
his breast on days Of ceremony and triumph
lin the same manner as general today
wears bis orders and insigniast In this man.
ner the bracelet became the insignia Of the
warrior The plebeian classes, courtesans,
dancing girls and others wore them around
the wrists and ankles.
Our ancestors, the Gauls, were also great
lovers of the bracelet. At Pont-Audemer Is
to be seen magnificent gold bijou OF this
kind, very finely worked. 1t is attributed to
the first part of the reign of the Merovin'
giana
At the commencement of the Sixth century
no trace is found of the bracelet In France A
revolution has been effected in wearing ap
parel as well e. morals. Ladies' wrists are
ornamented with large, colored silk cuffs en-
broidered with gold and pearls This fashion
ends with the Carlovingians. When was the
time that fashions prevailed longer than one
dynastyl Later on, ladies wore tight and
buttoned sleeves, terminating at the wrist; In
the Twelfth century, Jean de Garlande speci
Aes the works made by goldsmiths: hanap'
Qarge cups of gold and silver; necklaces
pins, knots and rings-but nothing is said Of
bracelets. Finally, ''panacles" were used
they were q sort Of bracelet composed of g
piece Of stuff upon which jewels were sewn
until finally in the last half Of the Fourteenth
century, the true metal bracelet appeared. L
seems that it was worn by gentlemen, al
though secretly, as kind of vow, badge O
servitude which they pledged to the lady o.
their thoughts.
The history of Jehan de Saintre, chamber
lain of King Charles vi, and of the Lady de-
Bellies Cousines bears witness to this Wher
Jehan de Saintre vows eternal fidelity to hi,
lady, she demands of him to constantly veal
an emblem of attachment. Son the first day
Of May, which will be tomorrow" she tell
him, "you will place a gold bracelet Of some
kind or other on your seft arm, and wear il
for a year" Ne1t day he comes with the
bracelet which be is to wear, and the lady
herself puts ID on. From about that time thi
piece Of jewelry has been called bracelet"
From about the middle of the Fifteenth
century the bracelet becomes distinctive
piece Of ornament among French ladies. A
the time of the "Directoire" the women whit
had adopted the fashion of wearing a robe
"a Romano ornamepted their arms with si1
bracelets, three on each arm; one high up
another above the elbow, the third at tn,
wrist This is not all, however; they els
wore rings on all their fingers, including tn
thumb; encircled their waist with larg
sheet as belt and wore large hoops in thei
ears A French lady dressed a la sauvag
On q savage style', wore flesh colored tights
over which was phrown a simple linen tn
uique, gold hoops around her thighs and legs
diamond rings on her toes, while on her fee
she wore sandals
About 1880 bracelets assumed great i'm
portance, and ranked even with literatur
and painting; in other words, they becam
romantic" Although it may appear rathe
bombastic to assign so high place TO piec
of jewelry, nevertheless nothing will qualif.
SO well the artistic tendencies in this direC
ton Of the goldsnliths Of that epoch. Brace
lets appeared on the arms OF ladies, compose
entirely of pointed arches, in the midst O
which ironclad warriors kept watch an
ward 1t is easy to imagine the enthusiasm
with which they were received, being S
well in keeping with the tendency Of tn
people.
At present, finally, the fancy and capric
Of the day dictate to tbe jeweler the shape
either new or copied from former ages, to b
given to their bracelets; sometimes serpen
twisting itself around the wrist, gold hoop
with long jewel, chain, etc. The shape
vary to the infinite at present, and many c
them are due to the ingenuity of our jewelr
designs -Jewelers' Circular.
Blue Jay Nutters.
Mr.. c. W. Bronx, of Moosic, while gather
ing chestnuts in Spring Run, Pa, ravine bs
came very much interested in the movement
~ - 49,