Ukrainian jewelry - national identity

Ukraine is the country with the most beautiful folk costumes. Embroidered sorochkas and colorful garlands inspire admiration around the world. But it's hard to imagine an outfit without accessories. After all, it is they that create the unique Ukrainian color. It so happens that the ornaments of the folk costume of Ukrainians can successfully compete with similar works of any other nation. Richness of colors, variety of forms, originality and precision of workmanship - these are the features of folk ornaments in Ukraine.

Ukrainian folk costume, in its current version, was formed in the 19th century. It is a combination of features of real clothing functioning in the life of the Ukrainian people and generalized ideas about it (by artists, painters, researchers). In reality, ancient Ukrainian costumes were much more complex and diverse. First of all, we must leave out here the Ukrainian nobility, Cossack elders, magnates and townspeople. What noblewomen, wives of hetmans and atamans wore in the 17th-18th centuries is another story. We will focus on folk jewelry closer to our time.

Traditional women's neck ornaments

To imagine a Ukrainian woman without neck ornaments - an impossible thing. Young girls, spinsters and married ladies - all wore "namysto" - a kind of necklace. Behind this word is a whole list of products - made of beads, metal, with coins. Ukrainian folk jewelry was dressed according to the occasion: for a holiday - richly, for an ordinary day - simply and modestly. But to show up without beads outside the home no woman would be able to - it was as if she went out without clothes.

The ornaments worn around the neck were not only elements that emphasized a woman's beauty, but also strong amulets that warded off evil spirits and protected her from evil eyes. And besides, by "namysto" one could easily determine the social status of a crafter. The brighter the necklace, the more rich and multi-rowed - the richer the woman. Typically, rural women wore up to three strings of beads around their necks, while wealthy women put on up to fifteen.

Each girl tried to collect as many ornaments as possible in her casket and tried to make them prettier than her neighbor's. New things were bought from the great holiday - at Easter and Christmas. Interestingly, even girls from poor families could boast a wealth of costume accessories. Such things were accumulated by them for generations and passed on to their daughters as family relics. Not surprisingly, the contents of a woman's casket could buy a pair of oxen, and often more.

If there were several daughters in the family, the most ornaments went to the eldest. Her mother would give her her jewelry treasures with the exception of a cross, an engagement ring and several strings of beads. The younger daughter was bought new ornaments, but her set was already more modest.

Ornaments made of metal

Ornaments made of metal are considered to be the oldest in history. The masters who made them were called variously depending on what materials they worked with. For example, "brass makers" worked with colored metals, often copper, "goldsmiths" made ornaments of gold in combination with stones, glass and ivory, and masters working with artistic woodwork were called "woodcarvers."

"Brassworking" is a term that came from the Hutsul region. It means the artistic processing of metal (copper, bronze, brass). The Hutsuls called such alloys "mossyazh", and folk masters made various utilitarian and decorative objects from it. They were also called "brassmakers" in other regions of Ukraine. Here are examples of metal ornaments:

• Dukacz - an ornament worn on the chest, attached to a ribbon or bead. Its base is a coin, and the whole resembles a medal, which was often completed with a metal bow. The first dukachas were given to Cossacks for exceptional merit, and over time they found their way into the jewelry collections of their daughters and granddaughters. They may have been decorated with portraits of people or religious images. Passed down from generation to generation, they wore out, making it difficult to recognize the applied images over time. Three forms of ducca can be distinguished:
  1. A round pendant without complementary elements. The focus was the view of the medallion.
  2. Round pendant on a ribbon with an additional decorative element.
  3. Pendant on a chain with a decorative element.

Among the decorative accessories were: ribbons, crosses, hearts, flowers and others. Many compositions referred to traditional Ukrainian motifs and ornaments.

• Salba - an ornament with silver coins also worn on the chest. The coins were sewn onto a cloth base in several rows. Silver coins may have been replaced with imitations made of metal discs or other elements. It took 20 to 60 coins to make one salba, but there were also copies with 100 pieces.
• Zgarda - a traditional Hutsul ornament, a type of necklace, which consists of many crosses, between which are placed brass or copper springs, tubes, and in the modern version - beads. The clasp was chosen in the form of a circle with spokes, of which there had to be an even number - otherwise it could bring misfortune.
• Shelesty - a metal necklace originally spread mainly in the Hutsul region (Western Ukraine). It consisted of tiny round bells. Later, pendants-bells began to be placed between the beads. When a girl walked down the road, a quiet sound could be heard. Ethnographers consider "rustling" to be one of the oldest folk ornaments.
• Hrivna - a short metal necklace made of silver or gold. The basic element was a kind of crescent moon with decorative designs on it. It was attached to a metal ring, suspended from a shuja. The hryvnia was quite heavy and emphasized a woman's high social status.

Beads for every occasion

Beads are a very important part of Ukrainian attire. Even the embroidery on the famous soroka (shirt) was adapted to the beads: in areas where it was accepted to wear many long strings of beads, the embroidery was not done below the neck, so as not to cover it with ornaments. Conversely: where cords of beads were short, there was embroidery both on the sleeves and around the neck.

• Beads made of natural coral - one of the most recognizable elements of traditional Ukrainian costume. Natural coral was imported from Italy in the form of beads or pieces and sold by the piece or by weight. They were strung on cords by hand. Because of their high price, coral was an indicator of wealth and high social standing. Less wealthy women, such as those from Transnistria, wore only three to four cords of beads, while the wealthy could count as many as ten. The great popularity of beads, and at the same time their high price, led to the creation of imitations. Beads were made from a variety of materials: porcelain, glass, wood, smalta (cobalt glass).
• Amber beads - are also among the traditional Ukrainian ornaments, but only in the regions of their extraction - in Volyn (Northwestern Ukraine). Unlike beads made of coral, amber beads were worn on only one string, although individual pieces could be of considerable size.
• Beads - beads made of painted Venetian glass, which every girl dreamed of. They were worn one string at a time in a set with other ornaments. Larger beads were hand-painted and decorated with gold. There was also an affordable variant for poorer Ukrainian women: beads made of inexpensive glass. Even in such an "economy" version, the whole thing looked colorful and rich, but cost little.
• Balmuts - a folk term for mother-of-pearl beads of a milky hue. They were popular in the nineteenth century and early twentieth, although they cost no small amount. Between the beads were inserted amulets - crosses, icons. Such a necklace symbolized innocence and youth, and was supposed to protect a girl from seduction by men.

Beads gave women the opportunity to create individual combinations. The set of beads used depended mainly on the region. For example, cravers from Polesia added natural coral beads to amber beads. Large beads strung on a long thread, harmoniously combined with tiny ones, so they were matched in pairs. In Podolia, on the other hand, beads were customarily lightened with mother-of-pearl: a subtle shade of pearl highlighted the red color of the coral.

Ukrainian byssus ornaments

The art of creating byssus ornaments was known centuries ago, but it gained particular popularity in the early 19th century. It should be clarified that in this case it is not a special kind of fabric made from the secretion of sea mussels, but a kind of embroidery with tiny beads, which are called byssus in Arabic. The fashion for products made of colorful beads first appeared in western Ukraine more often, and over time passed to the central regions. Various ornaments were created from beads strung on threads:

• Herdan - an ornament made of byssus worn on the chest. It consists of two bands connected at the bottom at right angles, sometimes the angle is decorated with a coin. Ornaments created with beads originally had their own symbolism: horizontal stripes - the image of the earth; wavy lines - water; crosses - the element of fire; rhombuses, circles and squares - the sun. The whole was kept in bright colors. Herdanes used for everyday use were made thin and simple, and for special occasions - wide and with intricate ornamentation.
• Theorifice - an ornament in the form of a collar, which flows smoothly over the chest, neck and sometimes the back. The width of the orifice could be about 20 cm and consisted of a complex, contrasting composition of patterns. At the back it was held up with buttons or loops. Initially orifices were decorated mainly by Lemkos (Zakarpattya).
• Sylianka - a narrow band of byssus cloth (braid), tied at the back around the neck. The name comes from the Ukrainian siliati = "to thread". The ornament was considered appropriate for everyday wear, but was worn not only for decoration - Ukrainian women believed that a silianka could protect from charms and bring good luck.

Traditional Ukrainian earrings

Earrings were always very popular among Ukrainian women. It was believed that the sound of moving pendants on the ears chased away evil spirits, and on top of that, relieved headaches. Among Ukrainian earrings, several distinctive types can be distinguished:

• "adder" earrings without pendants - so called because of the stylized snake head at the clasp.
• Earringswith discs and pendants - quite large and decorative with inserts of glass, stones and beads (byssus). They can have complex ornaments.
• Earrings with flat, geometric pendants.
• Earrings in the form of a crescent moon.
• Brass (blown)earrings.

Plant and animal designs were among the favorite motifs. Married women and ladies of older age preferred flat models, while young girls chose spatial - brass ones. During periods of fasting or mourning, women wore their most modest earrings, usually simple models in the form of a ring.

Cossack earrings

What distinguished a Cossack from a mere mortal? A rank, a saber, a nahayka, a belt and an earring. This last element contained a deeper idea, not just decorative. He was a Cossack custom, strongly connected with the military side of life. Although there was no pedestrian Cossack without a horse, not everyone was allowed to wear an ornament in his ear. So what did the pierced Cossack ear symbolize?

The very term "Cossack earrings" has already entered world culture. As a rule, they were made of silver in the form of a simple crescent, at most decorated with a simple pattern. No pendants, stones and the like. Male earring. An earring in the left ear meant that the Cossack was the only son of his mother, an earring in the right ear meant the last male in the lineage. Earrings in both ears meant that the Cossack was an only child in the family. In war marches and battles, such Cossacks were protected by comrades as much as they could. But it must be stressed that no pierced ears exempted a Cossack from the dangers and hardships of a war campaign. The burden of marches and battles was spread equally over everyone. Nevertheless, efforts were made to protect them - such was the Cossack unwritten rule.