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Description: |
Colonial households had an hierarchy of who was in charge of
what in a household. The man of the house was in charge of
providing for his family, expecting his house and home to be
his “castle” as it were. The lady of the house was in charge
of the rearing and caring for the children, making sure that
the house and gardens were run properly and that the
household staff were trustworthy, hard working and
efficient.
Beyond the duties that we currently consider needed for
caring for a home, the running a colonial household was a
full time job and needed many hands to provide food for the
table, fabrics for clothing and bed linens, knitting and
mending stockings, making clothing, weaving blankets and
educating the children, to mention only a few of the many
duties.
Most households had theft problems and since items such as
jewelry, bed linens, tea and coffee, sugar and liquor were
expensive, they were usually locked up with the lady of the
house being the keeper of the keys. The lady of the house
would hold all keys to household chests and trunks with the
hired help asking for access when needed.
The Keeper of the Keys is the second key in the
Keyed Up Series documenting the use of keys in
history. The three parts of a key are represented here with
a stylized bow, shaft and bit. This little beauty uses an
oval stone bezel set with beadwork to create the “bow” of
the key. The “shaft” has an opening that holds a set 4mm CZ
ending with a set stone on the end cap. The “bit” also has a
set stone nestled inside beadwork to lend cohesiveness to
the design. The bail and beaded jump rings lead to a simple,
but effective, strung necklace chain making a stunning
necklace for The Keeper of the Keys.
Note:
The key measures 3" long and 3/4" wide at the widest point |
