Antique jewelry glossary

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Fetter chain

A type of chain of which the principal links are elongated. Usually there are, between each pair of long links, a group, of variable number, of short links, sometimes simple small ovals but often of the types found on a trace chain, curb chain, etc.; where the number of short links in each group is three, the chain is called a 'fetter and three', and correspondingly for other numbers.

There are many varieties of the basic fetter chain, e.g. the long links may be oval or rectangular and are sometimes twisted (called a 'snaffle chain') or 'fancy' (e.g. ornamented with crossbars or intertwined into knots).

From: An Illustrated Dictionary of Jewelry, autor: Harold Newman, publishers: Thames and Hudson