A digital archive showcasing the extensive collection of jewellery and adornment images shared on the former Ethnic Jewels Ning site over the years. These images have significantly enriched discussions on cultural adornment and its global dispersion.
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Very nice. I love it. There was a very similar one on ebay for a while and I was tempted, but it looked a more coppery colour...........Now that I see yours (pristine and glowing) I think that I should have bought it......Maybe it was just a bad photo......Details very crisp and the top of the computer gives a wonderful reflection (you taught me this trick!)..
Do you know which part of Morocco?
Thank you very much, Chantal. I do not really know but I think that Ayis said once that he had seen a picture of a girl from the Ait Atta wearing a similar bracelet. The picture is not mine. My brother just got a new camera and he is practising with some pieces from my collection. I think he has used some sort of black vinyl surface.
I tjink that these were nielloed somewhen like a couple of hundreds ago and were worn around eastern high atlas.
Tell your brother to keep up the good work
Ayis can I ask, how did you know that they may have been nielloed two hundred years ago? cant have been photographs...so similar museum pieces maybe?
We find very early examples of nielloed bracelets in morocco as early as the eleventh century with hallamrks of cities not even close to contemporary niello production centers such as the atlantic coast or atlantic plains....hundreds of kilometers from the ait seghrouchen and the anti atlas where niello survived the latest.
We also know then the ait seghrouchen niello had a more widespread area from eastern high atlas to almost eastern rif mountains as well as in between were it was reported by an early french study in around the city of Taza.
Finally the pattern on this bracelet is almot identical to that we can find on ait seghrouchen open bracelets with even the breast like domes present as well....knowing that open bracelets are a very old style of bracelets found across north africa and that the ait hdiddou are saharan berbers not related to the eastern ait seghrouchen...we can conclude that when the ait hadiddou reached the high atlas in search of pastures they completelyy abandonned the bold saharan ornament with all its attributes such as leather and shell and even....and adopted the once refined ait seghrouchen nielloed jewelry but in their essay of retaining a bit of their own identity they transformed the ait seghrouchen open bracelets to hinged round bracelets which became their own jewelry...first of all nielloed such as other head ornament and necklaces they couldnt keep on using niello on their own new production ( the bracelets) due majnly to impovrishment...the thechnique in the tribe was lost so they could only make non nielloed bracelefs....still they were able to wear nielloed necklace and head ornaments as we can seen in photographs and poscards around the 1950 because they were able to import them from the ait seghrouchen who were still keeping the technique alive!!!!
this is my understanding and the origin of my statement
Thanks Ayis, very interesting and thorough. Now, knowing the rich history I regret even more not having bought the ebay one..........
@jose congratulate your brother on his pic. (he has a great future!) as the bracelet looks as if it had 2 parts.you need to look carefully before realizing that it is a reflection.......
Thank you very much. I will tell my brother. Actually he has made a few more so you may have to bear a ffew more of his "masterpieces".
Great, we'll "bear" with pleasure....Have you told him that he has been featured?