Bracelet 1875 - 1885

Editor: Here we have a bracelet by George W. Shiebler & Co., crafted between 1875 and 1885, and held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It seems to be constructed from individual bronze panels with relief carvings. What stands out to you about this piece? Curator: It's fascinating to consider this bracelet in terms of material culture. Look at the choice of bronze and the process of relief carving. Bronze, while evocative of ancient grandeur, was readily available due to industrial advancements. What does mass production alongside historical imitation tell us? Editor: That's a great point, so its antiquity is a manufactured identity of sorts? Curator: Exactly! This wasn’t meant for some elite patron. Think of who could afford this, how it was marketed, and the kind of aspirational identity it offered the wearer. We are confronted with questions of consumption, class, and the democratization of historically significant aesthetics. Are these historically-inspired figures accurately depicted, or idealized to reinforce specific societal values? Editor: So, it's less about high art and more about understanding its place in a specific consumer society? Curator: Precisely. The "who, what, where, when, and how" of its creation and consumption reveals the power structures at play. Consider how jewelry historically signals social status – is this bracelet attempting to subvert or reinforce that tradition, given its materials and production methods? Editor: I never considered jewelry through a materialist lens before. It really changes how I view the object. Curator: Indeed. By examining its materiality and production, the bracelet becomes a window into a particular moment in social and economic history, far beyond mere adornment.