Description
Antique Norwegian 830 silver mirrors wedding brooch. Late 19th to early 20th century. 3" tall, 15.6 grams with no issues. Really nice pin. Catches the light as you move around.Traditional wedding pin Norway. Great coat lapel or hat pin here.From the Web: The Power of Silver In rural Norway in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, women, men and children wore some kind of silver jewelry every day. Often that silver was in the form of a brooch or slje. Some styles of slje were specific to a region, others were used across the country. Simple pins were worn daily as the only fastener on a shirt or blouse. On special occasions, Norwegians wore more silver with their bunader, festive folk costumes, such as large brooches, buttons and shoe buckles, and finger rings.Silver showed the wealth and prosperity of a family, and Norwegians also believed it cured sickness in humans and animals, improved crops, and protected against storms and evil spirits. Huldrefolk were perhaps thep rimary reason for wearing silver jewelry. Also known as underworld creatures, huldrefolk tried to strengthen their gene pool by marrying humans and stealing children. Rural Norwegians never knew when or where they would encounter a huldrefolk, so they felt it was important to wear silver jewelry daily. The metal itself was strong, and dangling ornaments added protection by reflecting evil away from the wearer. Each time jewelry was worn in churc hor was handed down to the next generation, it became even more powerful.Rites of passage, especially baptism and marriage, were common times of huldrefolk attack, because humans were vulnerable as they changed status. The time between birth and baptism was particularly dangerous for infants because they were in constant danger of being swapped with huldrefolk babies. Parents often pinned a tiny slje on the baby's clothes until baptism provided more permanent protection. Girls might get their first full-sized slje to protec tthem at confirmation.At the precise moment a woman went from being single to married, she risked being taken to the mountain by huldrefolk. Brides wore the most and the finest jewelry, including several large broches, finger rings and bridal necklaces. Women throughout Norway wore special headdresses. Brides in central Norway wore headdresses decorated with beads and dangles. In western and northern Norway, brides wore metal crowns with hanging decorations shaped ike circles, crosses, leaves and birds. the few crowns that existed in a church parish were often available for rent from the owner, usually a minister or wealthy farmer.The Norwegian immigrants often took their bunader with them to their new homes but rarely used them. The did, however, continue to use their sljer.Norwegian women quickly adopted American clothing but proudly wore a slje at the neck to show their Norwegian heritage. Sljer are no longer used for protection; in fact, most wearers today are not even aware of that function which was so important in the past. Silver is still powerful as a symbol of ethnic ancestry. anderas
