IRISH JEWELRY
Early Christian period, the best known is the Tara
Brooch. This beautiful piece was found, not at
Tara, as its name suggests, but near Drogheda.
[ts name it owes, presumably, to the regal character
of its ornament. If the brooch was not found at
Tara it deserves to have been! This superb ex-
ample of the silversmith’s art is of white bronze
(findruine) as a basis, covered, in the usual way,
with ornament of gold, silver, enamel, niello and
glass. The face is divided into panels, in the Irish
fashion. Bounding these are raised borders of a
dark amber-coloured glass, edged with delicate lines
of gold. A good magnifying glass is necessary for
a detailed study of the design, which is composed
in part of exceedingly fine gold wire, and partly of
rich gilt carvings on the metal plate. There are
large attached circular ornaments of sapphire and
coloured glass, some of which have pieces of gold
inset. Gold inset in glass is certainly a daring com-
position. The back of the Brooch is less rich than
the front; it is for all that, a wonderful artistic con-
ception. Spiral motives, laid on in gold, tell us
that the period of the Brooch is early. Glass bosses,
similar to those in front, have gold ornaments in
their centres and fine lines of gold running through
them. In all, the artist has used no fewer than
seventy-six distinct varieties of design, every one
of which has some peculiar fitness for its allotted
position. Attached to the Brooch was a silver chain
of Trichinopoli work which was intended to hold the
pin in place. Altogether the Tara Brooch is a
marvellous piece of ancient jewellers’ work. Its
raised borders, the rich contrast of colours, the
variety of design, the extreme delicacy of execution,
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