Archaeological findings show that in the 10th and 11th centuries, various types of pendants and medallions on Christian themes were widespread in Western Polissya and Volyn.

From the 14th century, when the western and southern lands of the former Kyivan Rus were part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland, and later the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, religious medallions and icons were common among pendants.

In the 17th century, in Galicia, little icons were used as elements of beaded jewelry, such as ribbon gerdans, woven corner gerdans, and syliankas. Little icons were also worn on a ribbon or chain.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, stamped little icons became widespread, with the centers of production being the workshops of The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra and other centers of the Orthodox faith. From there, the crosses spread to all Ukrainian territories.

In Soviet times, the production of little icons in Ukraine almost completely ceased, resumed only after the declaration of independence, and developed in the 21st century. 

Zoriana Kuryliak 

Project "Decorative metal: metal elements of traditional Ukrainian neck jewelry" is supported by the European Union under the House of Europe programme.