Theva is considered one of the finest, most delicate and sophisticated jewellery making crafts in Rajasthan and also the rest of India. Pratapgarh, a princely state of Rajasthan is credited as being the birthplace of theva. It was probably introduced in the latter half of the eighteenth century, possibly during the reign of Maharawat Samant Singh. Theva craftsmen, known as the Raj Sonis, zealously guard the secret of the technique; its tools and usage, thus ensuring that theva remained within the domain of a select group.
A delicate filigree design is created by merging a thin gold foil sheet of 24-carat purity onto the visible surface of a sheet of glass. The glass may either be red, blue or green, suggestive of precious stones like rubies, sapphires or emeralds. Once the gold foil is mounted onto glass, the whole unit is then mounted once again on a separate foil, usually silver, and then set into a piece of jewellery or an article like a spice box.
Each individual piece of theva jewellery takes a geometric shape and could be round, oval, square or rectangular. The designs created are mostly conventional floral motifs, mythological characters, hunting scenes or episodes of settled domestic life.
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