BRACCIALETTO (Armilium, Armilla, Brachiale, Manica). - From prehistoric times down to the present, the bracelet has constituted a decoration for the arm of both men and women. It is almost always of metal, worked with various techniques; nevertheless one also frequently finds bracelets cut from hard stone, ivory, amber, glass, or other material, and even examples made of hair.

It takes on a symbolic meaning in the oath that the Anglo-Saxons swore upon their bracelets; already under Conrad I (d. 919) it formed part of the royal attire. In early Christian times, even among great men of the Church such as St. Cyprian (PL 4, 473), the use of the bracelet continues, in forms not very different from the classical type. We know from Clement of Alexandria (PG 8, 548) that women still wore, in his time, bracelets in the form of serpents. In the catacombs, bracelets of various shapes and materials have been found, for the most part of simple workmanship; many, especially for children, of glass, agate, bronze (Vatican, Museo Sacro). The finest example in gold with rich decoration, found beneath the basilica of St. Peter, is of post-Constantinian date. Some silver bracelets with discs, bearing figures of the Madonna and saints, already tend toward the Byzantine type of the 6th century. Some ancient examples recall Syrian motifs: for instance the one in the British Museum, with the Madonna on a medallion at the center and vine tendrils on the pierced body (coming from Egypt).

Barbarian art too develops the old classical forms with new decorations. One finds bracelets of solid gold in the form of a serpent and often with the body curved or round, in part smooth, in part with ornaments. This responds to the character of that art of ending the extremities with animal heads.

The few bracelets that remain from the early and late Middle Ages display more refined forms; with the Renaissance the bracelet becomes even more enriched. The use of the bracelet became very common in the eighteenth century, often with cameos or miniatures applied to strips of fabric, until, in the nineteenth century, classicizing forms flourished once more.

Bibliography5 works

BIBL.: O. Wulff, Altristische und mittelalterliche byzantinische und italienische Bildnerbe, I, Berlin 1909, pp. 162-224; W. Dennison, Studies in East Christian and Roman Art, New York 1918; H. Leclercq, s. v. in DACL, II, coll. 1118-21; I. Müller, s. v. in Reallexikon z. deutschen Kunstg., I, col. 1052; A. M. Ciaranfi, s. v. in Enc. Ital., III, p. 643.

Guglielmo Federico Volbach

@incollection{ec2_braccialetto_armilium_armilla, author = {Volbach, Guglielmo Federico}, title = {Braccialetto (Armilium, armilla, brachiale, manica)}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {II}, pages = {2007}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1949}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/braccialetto-armilium-armilla-brachiale-manica} }

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Braccialetto (Armilium, Armilla, Brachiale, Manica)

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