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Location: FIRENZE, (FLORENCE) TUSCANY, ITALY
Scene: FLORENCE Duomo Giotto Bell Tower Campanile
Description: Vintage Silver & Enamel Souvenir Travel Bracelet Shield Charm
Measurements:
| Height: 5/8 inch |
Width: 1⁄2 inch |
| Depth: 1/8 inch |
Weight: 1.0 grams |
Condition: Beautiful detail and in excellent condition for its age!
Shipping: I'd be happy to combine shipping if you win more than one charm! |
| <spacer type="block" height="1" width="1"> About Shield Charms: |
History
These sterling silver enamelled travel shield charms were popular with European, British and American travelers in the 1940's, 1950's 1960's, 1970's, and are highly collectible items today. The colorful vintage / retro look is very appealing to collectors and are quite the conversation piece. Some have a vintage patina and some look like they are brand new even if they are over 50 or 60 years old. They are wearable postcards and miniature works of art.
Women documented their travels by collecting a souvenir shield charm depicting the town or country coat of arms crest, a scenic picture of the area, castles, a famous landmark (Eiffel Tower), building (White House), person from history (Mozart) or an event (Olympics). These charms were often given to women as gifts from their men who were traveling abroad.

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FLORENCE Duomo & Giotto Campanile
Florence (Italian: Firenze) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany, Italy, and of the province of Florence.
From 1865 to 1870 the city was also the capital of the Kingdom of Italy. Florence lies on the Arno River and has a population of around 500,000 people, plus a suburban population in excess of 200,000 persons (about 1,000,000 with the important near city Prato). A centre of medieval European trade and finance, the city is often considered the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance and was long ruled by the Medici family. Florence is also famous for its magnificent art and architecture. The city has been called the Athens of the Middle Ages.
The "Historic Centre of Florence" was declared a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO in 1982.
Giotto’s bell tower (campanile) stands on the Cathedral square (Piazza del Duomo) in Florence, Italy.
This bell tower is one of the showpieces of the Florentine gothic style. Standing isolated next to the Cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore and in front of the Baptistery of St. John, this splendid construction attracts the eye and the admiration of every art lover by its design, rich sculptural decorations and the many-coloured marble encrustations.
This slender structure stands on a square plan with a side of 14.45 meters (47.41 ft). It attains a height of 84.7 meters (277.9 ft) sustained by four polygonal buttresses at the corners.[1] These four vertical lines are crossed by four horizontal lines, dividing the tower in five levels.
History
On the death in 1302 of Arnolfo di Cambio, the first Master of the Works of the Cathedral, and after an interruption of more than thirty years, the celebrated painter Giotto di Bondone was nominated as his successor in 1334.[1] At that time he was 67 years old. Giotto concentrated his energy on the design and construction of a campanile (bell tower) for the cathedral. He had become an eminent architect, thanks to the growing autonomy of the architect-designer in relation to the craftsmen since the first half of the 13th century. The first stone was laid on 19 July 1334.[2] His design was in harmony with the polychromy of the cathedral, as applied by Arnolfo di Cambio, giving the tower a view as if it were “painted”. In his design he also applied chiaroscuro and some form of perspective instead of a strict linear drawing of the campanile. And instead of a filigree skeleton of a gothic building, he applied a surface of coloured marble in geometric patterns.
When he died in 1337, he had only finished the lower floor with its marble external revetment: geometric patterns of white marble from Carrara, green marble from Prato and red marble from Siena. This lower floor is decorated on three sides with bas-reliefs in hexagonal panels, seven on each side. When the entrance door was enlarged in 1348, two panels were moved to the empty northern side and only much later, five more panels were commissioned from Luca della Robbia in 1437. The number “seven” has a special meaning in Biblical sense: it symbolizes human perfectibility. It is difficult to attribute artistic paternity to these panels, some may be by Giotto himself, the others by Andrea Pisano (or their workshops).
The lower levels with the hexagonal panels, lozenges and statues.
The lower levels with the hexagonal panels, lozenges and statues.
Through this work, Giotto has become, together with Brunelleschi (dome of the cathedral of Florence) and Alberti (with his treatise De re aedificatoria, 1450), one of the founding fathers of Italian Renaissance architecture.
Giotto was succeeded as Master of the Works in 1343 by Andrea Pisano[1], famous already for the South Doors of the Baptistery. He continued the construction of the bell tower, scrupulously following Giotto’s design. He added, above the lower level of Giotto, a second fascia, this time decorated with lozenge-shaped panels (1347–1341). He built two more levels, with four niches on each side and each level, but the second row of niches are empty. Construction came to a halt in 1348, year of the disastrous Black Death.
Pisano was replaced in his turn by Francesco Talenti who built the top three levels, with the large windows, completing the bell tower in 1359.[1] He did not build the spire designed by Giotto, thus lowering the designed height of 122 meters (400 ft) to 84.7 meters (277.9 ft) The top, with its breathtaking panorama of Florence and the surrounding hills, can be reached by climbing 414 steps.
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eCharmony Vintage Enamel Travel Shield Charms
Visit My eBay Store: echarmony
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Italy Vintage Silver & Enamel Souvenir Travel Shield Charms
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| Bari, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Bari, Italy - Ship |
Bologna, Italy - Coat of Arms |
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| Bologna, Italy - Two Medieval Towers |
Catania, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Catania, Sicily, Italy - Piazza Duomo |
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| Firenze, Italy - Campanile di Giotto |
Firenze, Italy - Duomo & Campanile Giotto |
Firenze, Italy - Florentine Lily |
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| Firenze, Italy - Palazzo Vechio |
Firenze, Italy - Palazzo Vechio |
Firenze, Italy - Ponte Vecchio |
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| Genova, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Genova, Italy - La Lanterna Lighthouse |
Genova, Italy - Piazzo di Ferrari Fountain |
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| Gerona, Catalonia, Spain - |
Messina, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Messina, Italy - Port Protectress |
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| Milano Marittima, Italy |
Milano, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Milano, Italy - Coat of Arms |
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| Milano, Italy - Downtown |
Milano, Italy - Duomo |
Milano, Italy - Duomo |
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| Napoli, Italy - Naples Bay & Vesuvius |
Palermo, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Roma, Italy - 1960 Olympics |
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| Roma, Italy - 1960 Olympics |
Roma, Italy - 1960 Olympics |
Roma, Italy - 1960 Olympics |
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| Roma, Italy - Colosseum |
Roma, Italy - Forum Arch of Constantine |
Roma, Italy - Forum Arch of Constantine |
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| Roma, Italy - San Pietro |
Roma, Italy - She Wolf, Remus & Romulus |
Roma, Italy - She Wolf, Remus & Romulus |
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| Roma, Italy - SPQR (Motto of Rome) |
Roma, Italy - Trevi Fountain |
Roma, Italy - Trinita dei Monti & Spanish Steps |
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| Sorrento, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Torino, Italy - Basilica of Superga |
Torino, Italy - Coat of Arms |
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| Torino, Italy - Mole Antonelliana |
Torino, Italy - Mole Antonelliana |
Torino, Italy - Valentino Castle |
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| Trieste, Italy - |
Trieste, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Trieste, Italy - The Castle of Miramare. |
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| Trieste, Italy - The Castle of Miramare. |
Turin, Italy - Torino the Bull |
Venezia, Italy - Campanile di San Marco |
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| Venezia, Italy - Grand Canal |
Venezia, Italy - Grand Canal Gondola |
Venezia, Italy - Grand Canal Gondola |
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| Venezia, Italy - Rialto Bridge |
Venice, Italy - St. Mark's Lion |
Venice, Italy - St. Mark's Lion |
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| Venice, Italy - St. Mark's Lion |
Venice, Italy - St. Mark's Square |
Venice, Italy - St. Mark's Square |
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| Verona, Italy - |
Verona, Italy - |
Verona, Italy - Castelvecchio Bridge |
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| Verona, Italy - Church of Santa Anastasia and Bell Tower from San Pietro Castle |
Verona, Italy - Coat of Arms |
Verona, Italy - Coat of Arms |
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| Verona, Italy - Della Ragione Staircase |
Verona, Italy - Della Scala Tombs |
Verona, Italy - Juliet's Balcony |
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| Verona, Italy - Juliet's Balcony at Villa Capuleti |
Verona, Italy - Juliets Tomb |
Verona, Italy - Piazza delle Erbe |
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| Verona, Italy - Piazza delle Erbe |
Verona, Italy - Roman Arena |
Verona, Italy - Roman Arena |
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| Verona, Italy - Romeo & Juliet |
Vicenza, Italy - Coat of Arms |
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Shield Charm Collectors Guide
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Types of Travel Shield Charms
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Engliand or UK Charms
English charms usually have baked in enamel and have an ornate sterling silver scroll pattern around the edges. The place name appears in the rounded curve on the bottom in raised silver. Primarily crests of England, Scotland, Wales locations.
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Austria Shield Charms
Many Austrian shield charms have a slightly different shape than the typical shields. A curve on the top. A lot of these Austrian shield charms have a gorgeous embossed Austria Crest (�sterreich Wappen) on the backs.
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Building or Landmark Charm
Important or famous buildings: castles, churches, universities, bridges, cathedrals & museums are depicted on these scenic travel shield charms. |
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Notable Person Travel Shield Charms
Notable people from history are depicted on these shield charms. Favorites in my collection include Napoleon, Shakespeare, The Pope, and John F. Kennedy. |
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Event Shield Charms
Event shield charms commemorate important events and occasions such as the Olympics, World Fairs, innagurations, The Queens Jubilee, etc. |
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Charms in Unique Shapes
Some of the older vintage shield charms were made in different shapes and sizes than the typical shield charm. I love to find these little treasures. (See Koln top left) |
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Ornate Reverse Side
I especially like to find the rare charm with an ornate stamping on the back. Some charms were made two sided with a crest, flag or coat of arms on the back and a scene on the front. I wish they were all made two-sided. |
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Unique Charm Shapes
These types of enamel charms are great additions to your shield charm bracelet. These charms are about the same size, contain enamel and are also of the travel theme. |
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Silver or Metal & Enamel
These lovely cloisonne type charms have enamel baked around the silver or metal trim of the design. Some were created using silver, others were made from base metals such as copper and brass. |
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Enamel Bell Charms
Enamel bell charms are a beautiful addition to shield charm bracelets. They are typically from mountainous European locations. |
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Scenic Shield Charms
Scenic shield charms. The gorgeous mountain, coastline, village scenes are like miniature postcards that document your travels.
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Coat of Arms Shield Charms These colorful charms portray heraldry, a town coat of arms, crests, state or country flags or combinations of these elements. |
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Brass or base metal & Enamel
I really love this type of charm, even though very often they are not silver. The colors are in a warmer vintage palette and they are thicker in depth than the most popular shield charms. |
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Flag, Crest, Coat of Arms
Heraldry, Coat of arms, crests, state or country flags or combinations of these elements.
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Animal or Character Charms
Everyone loves these animal charms. One of my premier themed shield charm bracelets contains all animal charms – from zoos and nature parks around the world.
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Old Vintage Enamel Charms
These enamel charms have a somewhat muted vintage earthone) color scheme. They usually have a strip of silver between the name panel and the scene. The text panel fields are usually white, black or red. They don't get any prettier than this.
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About me:
I have one of the largest collections of travel shield charms in the world. I have acquired tens of thousands of s (description exceeds maximum possible length) | | | |