The Heart Ornament in the Traditional Portuguese Goldsmithery.

Abstract

Dozens  of  metaphoric  interpretations  are  attributed  to  the  heart  and in terms  of  feelings  it  established  itself  as  a  container  for  the  highest value  to treasure.  The  presence  of  such  shape  in  the Portuguese traditional  jewelry,  and in  a  large  number  of  utilitarian  objects,  shows  the  need  of  the symbolism  of  the heart  in  the  human  relationships,  mainly  in  those  which  include  love. As  an adornment  the  heart  pendant  was  produced  in  different  techniques and  showed several  dimensions,  from  diminutive  to  large  sizes,  and  its significance  changed in  between  the  representation  of  divine  love  and  human  passion.  It suffered  a modification in the hierarchic position which generally had in the jewelry used by the  farmer  women  and,  through  the  centuries,  it  displayed  feelings,  technical skills  and  wealth,  turning  out  to  be  one  of  the  most  wanted  and most  displayed pieces,  and  therefore,  one  of  the  most  emblematic  jewels  in  the ensemble  of  the portuguese traditional jewelry.