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Man’s wedding costume from Galičnik, breast chain

early 1900s

British Museum

British Museum
London, United Kingdom

Man's breast chain, copper alloy, in the form of a long double curb chain, with a large bird-shaped hook at one end and a small hook at the other; from the chain hang thirteen Bulgarian coins: two from the bird's wings, one on a short length of chain from the end of the chain with the bird, the rest hung at uneven intervals, and in the centre, a sliding element with two coins. The three larger coins hung from the end of the chain and from the bird's wings are all 2 Leva coins of 1925; the rest are all 1 Leva coins of 1925, while the slider is set with a 50 Stotinki coin of 1937 above and an unidentified coin of 1912 below. The copper alloy used for the bird-shaped hook contaisn some silver with a small amount of arsenic as a whitener. The coins are all a copper-nickel alloy.

Worn throughout the Balkans as part of a man's festive costume, the breast chain was hooked at the shoulder and secured on the opposite side or looped over the belt, then lower end often hung with a watch. This one is hung with Bulgarian coins dated 1925, probbaly used once they no longer had any monetary value.

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  • Title: Man’s wedding costume from Galičnik, breast chain
  • Date Created: early 1900s
  • Location Created: Macedonia (former Yugoslav Republic)
  • Provenance: Diane Waller collection
  • Copyright: © The Trustees of The British Museum
  • British Museum link: Eu2001,01.6
British Museum

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