This large creepy crawly spider is by Trovelore a women-led and owned studio based in Delhi India. They specialise in creating miniature works of art and in particular brooches. Their pieces are hand embroidered using traditional techniques to ensure these skills are passed on to the next generations. Glass beads, sequins and fine wire are also used as embellishments. Trovelore jewellery is often in the form of plants, insects and birds. Each piece is unique.
Cellar Spiders, also know as ‘Daddy Long Legs Spiders’ are easily recognisable with their small bodies and eight long legs, they are often found in attics and cellars waiting patiently and quietly for their prey. Each of my spider legs is an impressive 6cm long!
The scientific name for spiders is Arachnids, which comes from Arachne who in ancient Greek myth made the goddess Athena jealous because she had exceptional skill in weaving. This so enraged Atheana that she turned her into a spider. Arachnophobia is the intense and irrational fear of spiders, it is one of the most common phobias.
I bought this brooch at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam a couple of years. We had travelled to Amsterdam on Eurostar, I do prefer a train to a plane, to see the Vermeer exhibition. His painting ‘The Girl with the Pearl Earring’ (circa 1665) was the inspiration for the book of the same name by Tracey Chevalier and was made into a film in 2003 starring Scarlett Johansson.
