Cuttack silver Filigree, India

Silver Filigree:

 Filigree, is an ancient art of crafting jewelry with fine metal wires.  The famous Silver Filigree craft made in silver city Cuttack, Odisha.  It is basically known as "Tarakasi "work which is a rich traditional craft work of Odisha said to be over five hundred years old.

This work is known and very popular because of its unique design and quality, as the products are made of 90% or more pure silver.

Silver  Filigree work

Process:

The process of making a silver filigree product is very peculiar in character; for it does not involve carving, engraving or molding a block of metal into jewelry, rather, building the piece bit by bit, by joining hair thin silver wires.

These silver or gold are melted on a small stove and then poured into a mold to make rods. These rods are inserted into manual wire drawing machines with smaller and smaller apertures, resulting in fine wires – the basic ingredients of filigree. The wires for outlines are placed on the design sheet and shaped according to the drawing.

Designs:

Designs are first drafted on a piece of paper, inspirations for which are derived from temples, the Konark wheel, god and goddesses, flora and fauna , jewelries of Odissi Dancers.

 Silver Filigree has been an important export item of Odisha from ancient times and has been a symbol of excellence reached by Odisha craftsmen.