Filigree
Filigree’s origin dates to the third millennia BC, in Mesopotamia, and is a very characteristic Art of Portuguese culture nowadays. The Filigree is a jewelry art that is passed through generations, whose craft is part of the Portuguese history and a tradition that must remain untouchable. None other jewelry art uses similar techniques to create such pieces nor uses such few metals to create this big and extraordinary shapes, comparing to Filigree.
The Heart of Viana is an iconic symbol of Portuguese Filigree, whose history suggests relates to the Queen D. Maria I. The history tells that the Queen might have ordered people to do the first Heart of Viana, as a gratitude symbol to give to Jesus, because He blessed her with a male son.
Places to visit if you wish to learn more about Portuguese Filigree:
Filigree’s Workshops in Gondomar;
CINDOR – Centro de Formação Profissional da Indústria de Ourivesaria e Relojoaria;
AC Filigranas – António Cardoso.
