Religious, cultural, ethnic… the importance of symbols in jewelry dates back to when man started wearing these accessories as a protective amulet. From east to west, both men and women have managed to express their individual and collective beliefs through their clothes, representing a particular importance for each society.
For Jews, The Tree of Life is one of the most important symbols in the Kabbalah. Consisting of 10 Spheres and 22 channels, these pieces represent the magnificent understanding of God and a way to understand how He created the world, representing a map of the Creation, schematized by the mystical vision of Kabbalah.
Another important symbol that is commonly used in jewelry is Hamsa hand. Also called hand of Fatima, this image is used in the Middle East and northern Africa to ward off the evil eye. It represents protection, power, and blessings. The symbol consists of five fingers and the thumbs pointing outside. Some versions contain religious inscriptions to make the amulet even stronger.
Many cultures and religions use the symbol of the cross. From Jewish-Roman provinces to South American ethnic groups, the cross has emerged as a particular symbol that has different meanings according to each culture.
For the Quechua, ethnicity of the Andes in South America, the cross makes reference to the image of the Sun and the Earth, showing the union between what is up high and what is down low, the higher power and humans. On the other hand, the cross has been used for differentiating both families and orthodox of beliefs, e.g. the Cross of Burgundy, to identify the Spanish monarchs, and the cross of Macedonia, to identify the Macedonian Orthodox Church.
The following symbol could be considered as predecessor of the cross. It’s the ankh, also called crux ansata, with an oval at the top. The Ankh represents the key of life since ancient Egypt, being an important hieroglyphic for that civilization. Its use disseminated throughout other faiths from the second century A.D.
In the Eastern culture, the Ying and Yang represent the power of opposites. It is a historic symbol that maintains the balance of two opposing forces, representing the power of balance and harmony.
The power of an accessory goes beyond its beauty. Its meaning, the belief it keeps inside, and the power it gives its owner goes beyond any physical factor, based on the importance that civilizations have given the use of symbols in jewelry
ALFA