A sixteenth century bridal jewel, a gift from Queen Dorothea of Denmark to the town-hall of Copenhagen

In 1557, the Danish Queen Dorothea, wife of King Christian III, gave a large bridal jewel of gilt-silver with stones, enamel and<br/>pearls to the city of Copenhagen for daughters of mayors and councillors to borrow for their wedding celebrations at the town-hall.<br/>The jewel, created to be used either as a brooch or a pendant, is made of multiple components. The central pelican has a tail<br/>that had, at some stage, been extended to hold a setting with an enamelled shield plaque featuring the year 1557, the year of<br/>the gift, and also the coat-of-arms of Sachsen-Lauenburg, belonging to Dorothea and her ancestors.<br/>In 1986 the Museum of Copenhagen gained funding for scientific analysis of individual parts of the piece. Analysis of the backpanel and the scroll-work of its framing proved it to be of fine silver but other parts of the jewel are of lesser quality. This study of the<br/>bridal jewel found it to be composed of components of different materials and different standards of workmanship. It is proposed<br/>that these components were brought together, probably in 1557, and that the frame and back-panel could have originated from a<br/>small pax/reliquary. The other parts may be reused from items in the queen’s jewellery box or outdated costume jewellery.<br/>This paper presents the historical background to the creation of this jewel, as several issues seem relevant to the royal couple’s<br/>situation and interests: Christian had come to power after a civil war, forcing the entire state to convert from Catholicism<br/>to Lutheranism. He and Dorothea had for several years to ‘make ends meet’ and present an exemplary Lutheran face while<br/>maintaining royal dignity. Dorothea is known to have re-used parts of her coronation crown in a hat ornament for her husband, so<br/>it would not be surprising that she re-used other items to create this jewel.