eBay Guides - SIAM STERLING NIELLO NIELLOWARE

THIS LOVELY OLD ART FORM IS ONE THAT WE'VE COLLECTED FOR MANY YEARS....AND ALTHOUGH WE MAKE NO CLAIMS WHATSOEVER TO BE EXPERTS ON ANY SUBJECT NOR IN ANY FIELD.....We do know a lot about old jewelry & many other types of treasures from numerous periods in time...and from various parts of the world. We enjoy sharing our experience - we've Collected numerous varied designs, types, styles, kinds ....of Jewelry and other old Treasures for many many years (we've been collecting jewelry alone...for 40 years and then some)......WE'VE TRAVELED MOST ALL THE GLOBAL VINTAGE JEWELRY CIRCUITS & SHOWS OVER YEARS-PAST, WE STILL GO TO ABOUT A HUNDRED SHOWS YEARLY, & WE STILL TRAVEL & COLLECT WORLDWIDE. WE'VE RESIDED GLOBALLY & WE STILL TRAVEL & COLLECT EXTENSIVELY. WE ENJOY OUR MANY JEWELRY & ANTIQUES CONTACTS ALL OVER THE GLOBE.

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~ SIAM STERLING ~ NIELLO ~ NIELLOWARE ~

YOU'LL SEE MANY CONFLICTING OPINIONS ABOUT THIS DESIGN-STYLE OF DECORATIVE ELABORATE JEWELRY (also URNS, TEAPOTS & TEA SETS, TRAYS, JEWELRY BOXES, ETC ETC ETC) AND YOU'LL READ SOME VERY CONFLICTING OPINIONS ABOUT THE COUNTRY-ORIGINS...AS WELL AS THE TIME-PERIOD OF ORIGINATION...OF THIS ORNATE OLD DESIGN STYLE.

The actual process of creating what's known as ' Niello' is elaborately intricate (read more about the actual process way down below).

Nielloware is thought by many to have originated in Siam (now Thailand).

Yet some think it was originally introduced to Siam through the East Indian merchants who traveled the ancient trade routes between India & China (which also included Siam & other Southeast Asian ports-of-call).

Some say Niello was actually produced in Thailand before the twelfth century.

Many aficionados know that there was greatly profound artistic & cultural Indian influence in Southeast Asia during the First century. Writings & archaeological evidence found SE Asia provide proof of the East Indian presence, & it's widely known that vast cultural exchanges took place between the Mediterranean & East Indian cultures.

Most of us are aware that jewelry played an important role in the ancient cultures because of its value as a symbolic item, and a monetary or exchange & trade item. Some ' experts ' on East Indian jewelry state that Niello does not appear to have been popular in India, nor was it an original art form to India.

Yes, you'll find many varying theories and opinions about Niello !

Some say it came to Siam from the Portugese & that the Portugese taught the Siamese artisans the craft & the intricate processes of crafting Nielloware. We've read that the earliest pieces of Niello in China appeared during the Tang dynasty 618 - 907.

Some say from it came from Rome, some say from Greece, some say from Persia (Iran), Cambodia, Malaysia, China, even Russia. Over time....cultural exchanges, wars, migrations, artisan's processes &
materials used....evolved drastically.....and many other factors as well, might always make it difficult to actually say for sure exactly where Niello truly & originally came from.

Some say the ancient Egyptians actually first created a Niello style of decorating & that the styling gained popularity swiftly through Europe (Middle Ages) - their 'style' used engraved or cut metals with fillers - sounds like Niello, right?

It's also said that Italian goldsmiths (Florence) used a process of engraving metal & then using filler to fill it in with (mid 15th Century) - sounds just like Niello, right?

Simply put.....the technique of creating Niello involves carving a design pattern into silver & leaving the pattern reliefed or raised out off the silver, then using the ' Niello Inlay ' to fill in the lower segment of the piece - the piece is then baked so the alloy hardens (old process was in an open fire) p- it's then polished / sanded smooth and at that point the artist can add extra intricate hand-done details. Reticulation filigree is also used.

Many experts feel that genuine Niello is strictly ONLY black & silver, and that other combinations or colorations don't qualify.

It's also said that this style of jewelry & other items.....with ' colorations ' other than the typical black & silver.....is created by using a different process (and by many....is not considered actual Niello).

Niello is an alloy (black metallic) containing sulphur, copper, silver (& lead) - it's used as inlay on basemetals which are typically engraved - Niello can be used as a filler & usually is seen in cut-metal or reticulated designwork.

We've traveled & studied various jewelry styles throughout Thailand, Malaysia, Sumatra, Philippines, Japan, China, Singapore, and many other areas of Asia....as well as all over EUROPE and other areas of the world including South America, etc. We were not present when this ancient art form was originated therefore we could not really say exactly where this lovely old artistic style came from.....although we truly believe this style originated in Siam or somewhere in the ancient Asian theatre.

We feel that these numerous ancient processes from many various areas of the world all sort of melded together and evolved......and we got Siam Sterling (some don't even consider it to be genuine Niello).

Many experts term it simply ' Siam Sterling Enamel ' (they don't call it Niello).

Typically the figures & symbolics seen on Siam Sterling pieces come from legends thousands of years old. Some figures you'll notice frequently on the Siam Sterling or Siam Silver are the Gods & other figures such as Ramasoon, Mekala, Natcha, etc - also monkeys, elephants and other synbols from folklore & religious backgrounds & beliefs.

Also note that, yes of course, there are various methods of coloring Sterling Silver.

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(ADDED NOTE : : OUR WORDS ARE OUR OWN & ARE WRITTEN FROM OUR MEMORY, AND OUR OWN VAST ONGOING STUDIES OVER MANY YEARS, AS WELL AS OUR OWN EXPERTISE & EXPERIENCES IN DEALING & DABBLING IN VARIED GENRES OF JEWELRY & ANTIQUES OVER THE YEARS. OUR WORDS ARE THE SOLE PROPERTY OF purplejammy on eBay. OUR Intent HEREWITH, IS TO ASSIST Collectors, both old & new, in expanding their knowledge base & learning more about what might be the jewelry genre they wish to collect).