Putti IV

A fragment of a Renaissance goldsmith’s belt, this necklace preserves the memory of an object of union.

At the time, the precious belt belonged to the vocabulary of marriage. Offered to the bride by her husband, it symbolically sealed the conjugal bond while marking the woman’s entrance into a new domestic and social order. Worn at the waist, close to both body and garment, it spoke of attachment, rank and responsibility.

Among aristocratic and affluent circles, such belts were among the most eloquent luxury accessories. Their ornamentation — heraldic emblems, courtly motifs, scenes of love — inscribed the union in a visual language of signs, lineage and contained desire.

Like caskets, rings or jewels offered at betrothal or marriage, they gave form to an idea of love: its pursuit, its promise, its fulfilment.

Transformed into a necklace, this piece shifts the symbol without erasing it.
What once encircled the waist now rests upon the skin.
Putti IV is a Love Jewel.