The exhibition Vanity, Profanity & Worship: Jewellery from the Maltese Islands opened in the sumptuous historic building of the Casino Maltese, Valletta on the 31st March, 2013.
For the first time in Malta, this exhibition brings together spectacular pieces of jewellery loaned from Maltese private and church collections which rarely, if ever, are seen in public.
It is a unique opportunity to view such a collection of artistic and historic jewellery under the same roof. Over 550 jewellery items are exhibited, and this provides a thorough survey of what jewellery in Malta looked like from ancient times to the present.
Jewellery is primarily a means of adornment, but it is also a marker of personal and financial status. It can demonstrate the religion practised by the wearer, and the beliefs and superstitions adhered to. It can be decorative, meaningful, curative, protective or ostentatious.
Jewellery can be made out of the most prized gems sourced from faraway lands or strung together from cheap materials easily at hand.
Whether precious or rudimentary, it is still classified as jewellery and its importance, beyond that of its decorative or intrinsic worth, lies in its historic value.
In this exhibition Patrimonju once again attempts a 'first'. Vanity, Profanity & Worship: Jewellery from the Maltese Islands presents the story of jewellery, from the earliest periods of man's presence in Malta up to contemporary times.
Organised thematically, this sweeping exhibition shows how jewellery is an art form which does not just please by its beauty, but can tell a far deeper story: the story of a nation's taste and identity.
A fully illustrated catalogue with studies on aspects of Maltese jewellery history has been published to coincide with the exhibition.
The exhibition is an event by Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti, a Maltese not-for-profit organisation which has organised landmark exhibitions in the decorative and fine arts in Malta for more than two decades.
For more information see www.patrimonju.org
Source: Malta360 com [March 31, 2013]
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