Designs, Handmade Craftmanship

DESIGNS

All designs are based on the inspiring possibilities of filigree and influenced by pre-colombian cultures. Motifs and craftsmanship that was exemplified by indigenous communities in their traditions and customs. The ‘Nariguera’, traditionally worn through the nose as a symbol of beauty and status, is featured in the collection for its cultural and aesthetic value.

CRAFTMANSHIP

The artisan that produces the KOLONI designs comes from a family of craftsman from Mompox and has spent his life specialising his artistry. 970 silver is used in all the designs to create pieces that are strong and elaborate.

HANDMADE

The handmade filigree used in KOLONI products is a delicate and specialised technique that requires many hours of patient labour and skilled experience to produce the intricate designs.

Koloni Colombia Materials

COLOMBIAN EMERALDS

Along side 970 silver KOLONI has incorporated Colombian emeralds that are prized for their transparency, crystallization and fire. Emeralds range in color from a slightly light green, to a deep, dark green but the darker green color is generally considered more desirable and the natural mineral flaws, add to the stone's character. Emeralds are closely related to history and myths and worn by indigenous tribes before the spaniards arrived. KOLONI celebrates the emeralds for not only their beauty but their natural powers to increase intelligence, protect love and marriages and ease childbirth.

COLOMBIAN AMBER

Colombian Amber, like pure gold, flowed from ancient trees. The fragrance caused the insects and inclusions to get caught and comes from deep in the Colombian jungles. This traditional material also has across the world been valued for its positive energies in love, healing, protection, and luck.

BULLS HORN

Bulls horn is a traditional material in Colombian craft and incorporated with silver leads to a modern yet earthy design. Bulls are an important part of Colombian tradition, the strong animal is revered and the material is used with great respect.

Mompox, Colombia - Mompox Filigree

MOMPOX FILIGREE
There is a tradition of filigree craftsmanship that dates back to the founding of one of the first towns in Colombia, a small riverside port called Mompox. It is here that rich merchants settled and brought both, vast quantities of gold and silver as well as the filigree style from Europe that generations of families made their own by dedicating their lives to this meticulous technique. Mompox over the years became isolated by the changing direction of the river and its colonial heritage (a world heritage site since 1995) remains to this day a small isolated community due to past terrorist violence in the surrounding areas and its hard to reach riverside location.