Articles
A true story
May
A few months ago, I discovered among my mother’s heirloom jewelry – which she never wore and kept them in small worn out boxes – a ring that my grandmother Stasa Leonti, had given to her many years ago in Mitilini where they lived. I put it on my finger almost instinctively and didn’t take it off for days. It was the right size and gave me the feeling I was wearing something truly unique, beautiful and “mine”.
I loved it right away and at the same moment, I wanted to lend to it something from me, to evolve it without changing it, to make it part of “my world”, so that it reminds me of its story, that is my story too, even if I don’t know it all.
And so the necklace and the earrings were created, by casting my mother’s ring using the lost wax technique, keeping the original concave emboss, which has its roots in the Minoan Civilization and presents one of the most important Minoan wall paintings of Knossos palace, “The Prince of lillies” (circa 1550BC). The ring of the collection is exactly the same as the original with only a slight difference at the bottom part, while the authentic ring remains at its initial form, in 22K Gold.
The next heirloom that enchanted me, was an authentic byzantine Constantine coin, which my mother gave me when I gave birth to my older son and was given to her by my grandmother, when I was born. These coins were traditionally given to new mothers as amulets to protect new-borns from the evil eye. As with the “Prince of Lilies” ring, what was of critical importance to me for the creation of the collection, was to preserve the main elements of the coin and create pieces that respect and reveal its history, while at the same time are timeless and beautiful to wear. This is why, the two Constantinato earrings of each pair present both sides of the coin and the chain on the pendant passes through two holes, with no buckle added.
The third and last heirloom piece that spoke to my heart was an original Commemorative Amulet of the 19th Century, which has different embossed designs on its two sides, showing the Birth and Baptism of Jesus Christ with exquisite details, such as human figures, animals and landscape.
Along with the historical value and exquisite craftsmanship of this collection, with respect to every detail of the originals, there is also its sentimental value for me and this is something that’s hard to really put into words; not only because it is literally created from real family heirlooms, but also because in my mind, they hold the power of these small personal items that give you a feeling of protection and serenity when you have them with you or wear them.
And that is something you can’t justify or explain using logic, but I guess that’s where their magic lays.
To my mother