Inspired by History, 2022

Safeguarding Necklace

Rina Ben-Yaacov

Yael Shkedi Jewelry School

700.00 USD

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We plan to ship within 72 hours

The Back Story

Inspired by History

Safeguarding Necklace

The belief in the evil eye is a very common element in human folklore and appears among people and tribes who have no cultural or geographical connection between them. Beads decorated with spirals or circles with a dot in the center appear in many cultures. Eye beads dating to the 6th millennium BC were found at a Sumerian site in Mesopotamia. The spiral pattern appears in Celtic bronze bracelets, Viking jewelry, necklaces of ancient German tribes and even in North and Central America native tribes (combined with turquoise chains). All were probably used as amulets.
The psychologist Jung coined the term "archetype": forms or symbols that exist in all human beings in all cultures, a kind of ancient image from the past of the human family.
In this necklace, I tried to connect to the archetypal forms of amulets. The design, shapes and colors of the necklace are meant to inspire the viewers - even if they are not into history or archeology - the archetypic memory and emotion of a protective, safeguarding jewel.

The Creator

Rina Ben-Yaacov

Specialization/Major

Jewelry Design

Graduation Year

2021

Location

Israel

About

I got my craftsmanship skills from my father. He would spend many hours in his workshop, building, creating and repairing wooden or metal objects. When I grew up, I joined him every now and then, and together we would build furnitures for his grandchildren, toys, and other tools. I had a dream that when I retire, we will take a course in carpentry or metal work and create wonderful things together. Unfortunately, he passed away the day I retired, and I had to fulfill my dream alone. And so, I went to study product design, and after that Goldsmithing. I find that Goldsmithing has the perfect combination between craftsmanship and artistic vision, so unwittingly I chose the profession that suits me best. After forty years of working in science and computer programming, I can finally do what my soul really wants.

Go to Rina Ben-Yaacov's page

Features

Imperial

Metric

Measurements (Width X Height X Depth)

25 X 25 cm

9.84 X 9.84 Inch

Weight

1 kg

2.2 Lbs

Materials

Sterling silver and green agate stones

The Process

Each of the three silver pendants is a result of a long process. Each one was created of two dome shaped halves. Each half was punched on a round shape to create the dome, and then hammered to create the special rugged structure. On top of each dome, I welded a spiral wire. Only then I welded the two domes to create a hollow form.
To keep the round shape of the necklace, the agate beads were stringed on a silver wire. The silver chains on the back side of the necklace are also handmade in a style called byzantine chain.