Sacred Heart of Jesus Medallion order - Neckless

HISTORY:

The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Sollemnitas Sacratissimi Cordis Iesu) is a Catholic solemnity dating to the Middle Ages. Its earliest recorded mediations are attributed to the French abbot, St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153), and devout adherents include St Francis of Assisi (1181–1226), St. Bonaventure (1221-1274), St. Gertrude of Helfta (1256-1302), St Francis deSales (1567-1622), and St Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647- 1690) who, on her deathbed, whispered “I need nothing but God, and to lose myself in the heart of Jesus.” It is this piety to which our Sacred Heart Medallion is devoted.

THIS MEDALLION:

The medallion is painstakingly sculpted by our resident, Sicilian-American artist. The obverse (front) depicts the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus framed in a beautiful gold enamelwork (symbolizing the kingship and divinity of Christ). The reverse is patterned after Michelangelo's Pieta with a Marian blue enameled background. The sides are hand-hammered to replicate a solid-stone carving. As with all of our creations, this beautiful medallion necklace is unavailable anywhere else at any price.

To make the medallion, molds are created in wax from the original sculptures and then handcast in sterling silver. The medallion itself weighs in at 4/10ths of a troy ounce (app. 12.5 grams) of solid, tarnish-resistant sterling silver, crafted with techniques dating to 4000 years before the birth of Christ. In order to properly enamel the piece, it must be encased in a 100% pure-silver casing. Lesser jewelers will use the modern process of electroplating their pieces prior to enameling because it is quick and cost-effective. Unfortunately, electroplating will obscure fine detail and is insufficiently durable.

Colannino's Sicilian® LifeStone™ collections uses the millennia-old practice of depletion gilding in which up to 20 successive acid baths, neutralizing baths, cardings, and secondary acid baths are used to remove surface impurities, creating a .9999 fine silver surface. Each piece is then finely burnished and sent through another round of multiple depletion gildings. When each piece is perfectly gilded, they are then enameled in multiple layers of transparent glasswork and fired at over 1400 degrees Fahrenheit for successive firings. Then, the whole process of depletion gilding, burnishing, depletion gilding, and enameling are repeated for the second side.

After additional hand refining, hammer peening, patina, surface finish, and polish are accomplished, the completed medallion is ready to string on our exclusive, hand-knotted Ball & Post beadwork necklace. Each Ball & Post necklace is available in lengths of approximately 665 or 830mm long (~16 ½ or 24 ½ inches) and is composed of solid sterling silver beadwork over bead-cording. We execute the exquisitely thin Ball & Post beadwork necklace by utilizing a cording protocol which produces a necklace 15-times stronger that the same diameter of steel wire.

Each beadwork necklace contains one-hundred-twenty or one-hundred-fifty, 2mm sterling silver-ball beads, one-hundred-nineteen or one-hundred-forty-nine 1x4mm sterling tube beads and is terminated in four fisherman's knots and a magnetic catch. In total, there is approximately three-fifths of a troy oz. of solid sterling silver (~ 17 ½ - 18 ½ grams or almost 2/3rds of a standard ounce) in this beautiful medallion and Ball & Post necklace combination. It is a work of art that you will pass on to multiple generations order and which – we can only hope and pray – will do justice to this most noble devotion.

Please note that each Sacred Heart Medallion necklace is handmade to order, and the one you receive will vary slightly from piece to piece (as all handmade items will). Each carries a 100%, no-questions-asked, money-back, 30-day return guarantee.* Although we do our best to ship quickly, please allow up to four weeks for creation and shipping. Thank you for your interest!

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Medallion Necklace Specifications:

MEDALLION:
* Size – App. 19mm x 19mm x 7mm (~3/4” x ~3/4” x ~5/16” inches)
* Material –
Solid, tarnish-resistant sterling silver with pure silver gilding and high-temperature enamelwork.
* Weight –
App. 4/10ths Troy Oz (~12.5 grams)

NECKLACE–
Length:
* Style 1: App. 830mm Long (~24 ½ inches) x 2mm wide
* Style 2: App. 665 mm Long (~16 ½ inches) x 2mm wide

App. Breaking Strength: >40lbs (>13.6 KG)

Material:
Sterling Silver over braided beading cord

Bead Ct:
* 16.5 inch: 120 x 2mm round beads, 119 x 4mm x 1mm tube beads
* 24.5 inch: 150 x 2mm round beads, 149 x 4mm x 1mm tube beads

Weight:
* 16.5 inch: App 1/6th Troy Oz (~5 grams)
* 24.5 inch: App 1/5th Troy Oz (~6 grams)

TOTAL WT COMBINED .975 Silver:
App. 3/5 Troy Oz or ~2/3 US standard Oz
(* 16.5" length: ~17.5 grams
24.5" length ~18.5 grams)


*To obtain the money-back return guarantee, simply contact us by Etsy messenger and ask for a return authorization number and instructions. Then, follow the directions we will send you to return the Medallion Necklace. Once we receive the returned Medallion Necklace in the same condition in which we sent it to you, we will issue a full refund through Etsy. It's that simple!

** Keep away from children, and do not wear in an environment in which the necklace may become tangled and present a choking hazard.

***If you live in the People's Republic of California, this piece of fine jewelry contains silver, copper, and other materials that must carry this warning: “WARNING: This product contains a chemical known to the State of California to cause cancer.”