Butterfly Jewelry - A Symbol of Rebirth

Butterfly Jewelry Origins

Butterfly jewelry, what does it mean, and why has it been a popular motif in jewelry for so long? Well, the obvious answer is that the butterfly is a beautiful insect. It has color, grace and motion. It attracts the eye and fills us with a sense of wonder. When I was a child, the butterfly fascinated me with its metamorphosis. I remember sitting in front of a chrysalis for hours, willing the newborn creature to emerge. Some of my earliest drawings were of the butterflies I watched in the field behind my Midwestern home. My earliest earrings involved a complicated Monarch design, full of teeny little white dots and thin black lines. Lovely, I thought, but it took forever to craft.

An Ancient Symbol

Years ago, when we had a tragic loss within our family, my talented brother and his artistic wife created a beautiful maple box for my husband and I. Reda cross-stitched an elegant butterfly design on the top of the box. I don’t usually think in terms of symbols, and was thankful for such a lovely gift. But Jeff reminded me that the butterfly was a symbol of rebirth. I have discovered that the butterfly has retained a spiritual meaning for millennia.

The ancient Greeks associated the butterfly with the soul. To me, this is very appropriate. Whether you feel your activity after death includes heaven or finding your way again as a human being, rebirth of some sort is involved. The amazing butterfly, like all insects, goes through a period of metamorphosis. But unlike many of its fellow bugs, the end result is a glorious burst of color and beauty, soaring heavenward.

The butterfly has a spiritual meaning in other cultures as well. From Mexico to Ireland, there is a history of viewing the butterfly as being a soul of the departed. I think this is lovely and whimsical.

The Butterfly as Art

Some would suggest the butterfly itself is an art form. I would have to agree! What more perfect symbol of some Creator’s hand than the symmetry and lovely form of this insect?

Even very early depictions of butterflies are unmistakable.

Jewelry artists have captured their glory for eons, allowing people to wear a butterfly as a brooch, pendant or pair of earrings. Some of my favorite animal-themed jewelry is from the bakelite era, popular from the 1920s through the 1940s.

Nowadays, you can even find real butterfly wing jewelry. And every artist has his or her own conception of the insect. But to me, there is nothing as lovely as the real thing. And perhaps this is because I feel that life is the most exquisite art form of all.

Merry Rosenfield has been creating lovely butterfly jewelry designs for many years. She has always been fascinated with bugs, and is still delighted with most of them!