Chains

Tracing the history and celebrating the beauty of one of humanity’s oldest personal ornaments

This fascinating and skillfully illustrated monograph shows how extraordinary jewelry―capable of linking the past to the future in the name of creativity, beauty and innovation―can be generated from such a simple functional element as the chain. Adored by kings and queens, the chain is at once a symbol of the manufacture of ancient civilizations and the countercultures of the young. The chain is one of the most loved jewelry pieces of material culture and the most worn in the history of costume, providing perpetual inspiration for artists, stylists and designers. From the Sumerians, Egyptians and Greeks to medieval rigor, Renaissance splendor and beyond, this book―with an authoritative critical essay and a large selection of photographs―retraces the symbolic and aesthetic evolution of the chain from early history to the modern day and its intersections with art, fashion, design, manufacturing and new technologies. This updated version of the original 2018 publication includes expanded illustrative material.