Brooch

Brooch formed by three elements: male or clasp and female or clasp, both with motif of lion rampant crowned and hole for attachment to the garment; and chain of rectangular links. \The brooches are small jewels made of precious metals. Those preserved in greater numbers are usually made of silver of different purity by casting or stamping and subsequent chiselling or engraving, respectively, of certain decorative details. They consist of two identical parts that fit together by inserting a lamellar tongue into a circular, quadrangular or trapezoidal ring. To these two elements can sometimes be added a third, formed by a chain of variable length (ranging from 3 to 7 cm.), almost always with wide circular links, which makes the enclosure more flexible. The physical characteristics of these pieces are completed by a series of perimeter orifices, specific or taking advantage of the openings of their design, in variable number, which allow them to be sewn on a textile base. \nBecause brooches are ornaments that, as in the case of buckles, have a very precise function: to join two parts of a garment to adjust it to the body. Hence their use is related, for example in the context of traditional clothing, with male anguarinas, jackets and capes, and with female manteletas or shawls. Apart from this use, brooches have been used since the Middle Ages to close a wide variety of garments: raincoats would be one of the usual supports for the largest and most valuable ones. \It should be noted that it is difficult to establish when each model appeared on the market, as well as how long it was in use in each case, since it was common at a given time for the range of decorative motifs to be very wide, in order to accommodate the different tastes of customers. On the other hand, it is quite probable that during the 19th century models from the previous century were copied, in the same way that in the first half of the 20th century brooches related, at least supposedly, to the popular Spanish clothing of earlier times were reproduced without interruption.