For many centuries men and women have been using charms as talismans to protect them from evil spirits or for luck and prosperity. The use of charms attached to bracelets appears to have been started by the ancient Egyptians who wore them as symbols of their devotion and to carry with them to the next world in order that the gods could identify them and assign them their fitting status.
The early Christians in Rome carried a charm shaped in the form of a fish to recognize each other. In the Dark Ages, charms were worn for political identification and to designate the family of the possessor. Knights in the Middle Ages wore them to protect themselves in combat and the common people also wore charms. All through the Renaissance their use faded, particularly by the richer classes, as they became more informed and much less likely to believe in superstitions. However the less knowledgeable poorer people still believed in charms as protection against wickedness and to give them luck.
Wearing charms was rejuvenated in the UK by Queen Victoria who wore a silver charm bracelet with lockets which contained images of her family. This had a huge affect on the wearing of charm bracelets by the general population who began to wear them, not as amulets, but as ornamental objects. Family crests. glass beads and lockets became the rage of the day. Following the conclusion of World War 2 there was a massive upsurge of charm wearing as servicemen brought back ornaments and beads to their sweetheart from far flung places of the world. Designers in the United States carried on the trend and started to make charms and gold charm jewelry. Ever since the wearing of charm bracelets has continued to boom.
In the present day a large assortment of necklaces, bracelets and earrings are offered with bracelets being the most fashionable. The precious metals, silver and gold, are usually used though some people prefer bracelets made from beads or pearls with gold or silver charms. Bracelets differ in price from under $100 to many thousands of dollars so are within everyone’s budget. There are numerous kinds of religious charms depicting saints and a huge array of charms depicting animals and objects including dolphins, rabbits, cupids, ballerina shoes etc.. One of the most popular are angel charms.
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