by Angie Barron

Created on: February 07, 2009   Last Updated: February 22, 2009

Jewelery tastes have certainly changed since the middle ages. Today we prefer a little modesty in our accessories. Small elegant diamond studs and single stone pendants are among our favorites here in the modern world. Even though jewelery from the middle ages may seem a bit gaudy to us today we still use the same basic elements as our ancestors.

Gold and silver were used in the middle ages just as they are today. Pearls and precious stones were used to accent these metals. While today gold vs silver is about personal preference, in the middle ages silver was seen as the metal of the lower classes. Gold was the metal of choice for kings and those higher up the social ladder.

Goldsmiths obtained their gold through recycling ancient coins. Most of the gold produced in the High Middle Ages was left over from the court of Byzantine emperors. Gold acquired from Arab trade was introduced to France, Italy and England for coinage after the thirteenth century. After the fourteenth century, gold production increased due to mining in Hungary as well as Bohemia. While most of the gold was obtained through mining, some was also obtained through the method of panning. Panning is a method in which river deposits are swirled about in a pan to separate the gold from quartz. Much of this panning was done in Rhine.

Early in the middle ages the most typical type of jewelery worn was functional. Functional jewelery includes buttons, clasps and belts. The styles of dress dictated the type of jewelery worn and the fashion of the middle ages did not call for more elaborate jewelery styles. The clothing worn by both women and men covered the body from head to toe. The clothing may have featured decorative embroidery, but jewelery was left out of the equation. Belts were worn by men and woman and the only other jeweled accessory would have been a brooch used to fasten a tunic at the neck.

Brooches were circular in shape and those decorated with stones or pearls were known ring brooches. Other types included the cluster brooch or the wheel brooch. The cluster brooch featured a large gemstone in the middle with smaller stones set in a cluster around it. The wheel brooch was the next step in the design. Ring brooches were used to fasten the fabric of a garment and therefor were open in the center to allow for the fabric to be pulled through. As brooches became less functional and more decorative there was no longer a need for the open center and so the designers added spokes like a wheel which were decorated with stones or pearls as well.

We have certainly come a long way in the way of bling these days. Our styles these days focus less on function and more on fashion. An outfit is simply not complete without the perfect pair of earrings. Women these days know how to match a piece of jewelery perfectly with their face shape and even skin tone. We have certainly perfected the art of accessorizing.

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