Bridal Crown

In traditional culture, a wedding is a rite of passage. At its centre is the daughter's entry into the role of a wife, marked by the loss of the symbol of her maiden status – the crown. Within the wedding ritual, the bride, wearing her special headdress, is set apart and guarded. At the wedding, the bride crosses the boundary between two worlds, passing from the familiar, orderly, and safe one into another, new and unknown, symbolically dying and being reborn.

Sequin crowns were worn in South Courland during the 19th century. Not everyone could afford such a crown, as it was costly. Therefore, crowns could be borrowed. A single headdress could serve for the weddings of several brides. The name given to the sequin crown describes the distinctive decoration of its upper surface. The base of the crown was usually made of bark and covered with fabric. Into the circular base, whose outer surface was wrapped in a patterned silver brocade ribbon, bundles of metal wires were inserted. Upon these rests the cloud-like adornment of the upper part – spirals of metal wires in various shapes, complemented with colourful glass beads, metal-foil flowers, and thin, smooth metal discs (sequins). With every breeze and movement of the wearer, the discs stir and tremble endlessly, and as the metal elements touch, they produce a barely audible sound. The bridal crown shimmers and glitters, reflecting light on the facets of the metal surfaces coated with a thin layer of silver.