Traditional Jewelry of the Adriatic Ethnographic Area

Abstract

A small but extraordinarily rich segment of our cultural heritage is revealed, the one showing the imprint of the whole creative imagination of our forefathers, through a multi-layer analysis of the richness of the jewelry at the coastal region of Croatia. It is analyzed in all of its aspects: from the form, through the technique of manufacturing to its role and function, as well as complex messages and meanings it contains. The jewelry preserved in Croatia, in all of its aspects, both formal and essential, indicates to its origins, sometimes in the far past. Disclosing the similarities with the jewelry of the Mediterranean circle, as well as of those items showing oriental influence, the stormy paths of the history of this part of the world are revealed.