Renaissance jewellery

About the project

The Rijksmuseum has in its collection over 40 pieces of jewellery from the second half of the sixteenth and beginning of the seventeenth century. It is a period marked by sculptural design and the use of multicoloured enamel and precious stones. The ornaments were worn in different ways by both men and women. The names of the owners are known in a very few cases, but just like the maker and the place of origin it is often a mystery. In the nineteenth century these pieces of jewellery were popular collectables, but their rarity also spawned forgeries or radically modified pieces.

Aim of the project

The purpose of the project is to employ various non-invasive research techniques to determine the physical and technical aspects of the pieces. The results provide an insight into the goldsmithing techniques, but may also reveal the possible workshops or places of origin when combined with archival and literature research.

The Cupid pendant is a good starting point, not only because of its excellent condition, but also because we have more information on its origin and there are comparable pendants in other European collections. Comparative research centering on those pendants will focus on technical similarities and differences.

Related publications

• S. van Leeuwen, J. van Bennekom en S. Creange, 'Genuine, Fake, Restored or Pastiche? Two Renaissance Jewels in the Rijksmuseum Collection', in The Rijksmuseum Bulletin 62 (2014), no. 3, pp. 270-287.

• J. Rohou, 'L’Amour archer, un bijou matrimonial de la fin du XVIe siècle', in La Revue des musées de France. Revue de Louvre (2018), no. 1, Écouen - 40 and de musée national de la Renaissance, pp. 91-119

Related projects

Database of historical enamel compositions.

Partners and sponsors

This project is supported by the Tiffany & Co. Foundation.