Mary Ryan Hurst, jewelry designer.
“I send a piece of my culture, my heart and my soul out with each piece of jewelry.”
Mary Ryan Hurst was born and raised in County Tipperary, Ireland. Although she has lived in the United States for years. Mary returns to Ireland every year to visit her family and to get inspiration for her jewelry designs.
Mary studied dress design and incorporates her love of fashion into each piece of jewelry she creates. Her collection consists of one-of-a-kind and limited editions.
Mary’s Celtic Jewelry harks back to ancient traditions but is designed for today. Since each necklace is original, each one takes on a distinct personality and the naming process is almost mystical.
Welsh pewter pendant with pearl puddles and quartz nuggets.
The legend behind this motif is that St. Brigid was making the shape of a cross from a bunch of rushes. Her father, a pagan tribal chieftain, saw her making the cross and was miraculously converted.
The Celtic spiral motif symbolizes continuous growth, unity, and oneness of spirit, more specifically, the symbol also stands for eternal life.
Celtic knots were adapted by Christians and used in monuments, such as the famous stone high crosses that dot the Irish landscape. Taken from its pagan earth-centric meaning, the Celtic knot serves a purpose in the jewelry design in that all creation lives and moves and has its being.
The Trinity Knot i symbolizes connection of all life and is often found with depictions of animals, plants, or humans.
The Celtic Tree of Life is motif used in ancient Ireland that illustrates all forms of creation. The tree was a source of basic human sustenance; it provided food, shelter, and fuel. Because of this it was also believed by the pagans that trees had other spiritual mystical properties.
To read more , please visit the blog posts about Mary Hurst at www.fairweatherhouseandgallery.com
