Filigree Belt - Bukhara - Gallery

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Filigree Belt - Bukhara

Posted by Peter Hoesli on November 17, 2014 at 6:01pm

This is a very special belt from Bukhara. The background of the belt is pink. The gold plated silver filigree has been placed on top of the pink colored silver. The pink color is like a mirror - absolutely stunning! It would be very interesting to know how this pink background is manufactured.

Comments

ait ouakli November 17, 2014 at 6:23pm

what a wonderful piece. the feligree work is big but still very beautiful
Lynn Ardent November 17, 2014 at 6:47pm

Very interesting that this is from Bukhara, was there Ottoman influence in the jewelry there as well?
Peter Hoesli November 17, 2014 at 7:34pm

Dear Lynn; To my knowledge there is no Ottoman influence in Bukhara. One never knows though... I know that it is a Buchara belt, because I have seen a pretty much identical sample but with a black background, in the book "World of Belts". I believe that the pink version is much nicer though. Also, my belt is featuring the decoration at the bottom, which is missing from the one in the book. Regards. Peter
Betty November 17, 2014 at 9:35pm

What a wonderful piece, Peter.

It reminds me a lot of belts from the Caucasus region, especially Daghestan.

Since old trading routes connected the Caucasus and Central Asia, I imagine Ottoman influences were transported this way...
Lynn Ardent November 18, 2014 at 1:49am

I agree with Betty, it looks quite Ottoman / Caucasus / Balkan influenced to me. It could be there were jewelers from the Ottoman world working in Bukhara (as one sees with some Saudi pieces from Yemeni jewelers working in Saudi Arabia), or it was made for customers with these tastes (as in the Ottoman-influenced pieces which appear in Yemen), or something else entirely.
Betty November 18, 2014 at 4:57pm

The lacy decoration at the bottom of the belt is indeed very Caucasian/Ottoman from what I know (though I am of course no expert). I am attaching two images of belts I saw this summer in the Caucasus region(one in a Museum in Armenia, one at an antiques market in Georgia). Unfortunately, the pics are not great....
Peter Hoesli November 18, 2014 at 11:21pm

Dear Betty; many thanks for posting photos of these beautiful Caucasian belts. I love the second one from the right - lovely - I should have been with you in this shop! The one on the far right is a huge belt. I have a similar one. It weighs a hefty 1.7 kg but I love it. Mine is showing also signs of old repairs at the back - I love belts which show the sign of having been used. I will post a photo of my large belt in a few days. Also, I will post a copy of the page from the "World of Belts" with the Bukhara belt on it.
With kind regards. Peter
ingrid Langerak November 20, 2014 at 12:51pm

Peter, Betty, have a look at one of my anklets from Ethiopia with the horsebelt. I am placing a close up of the anklet. The work is so similar to these belts. Further in my case the underlay is red, and it is a thin folie layer.In your case pink. Do not forget that the Turks were also in Ethiopia( they brought in the Islamic religion). So it must be Otoman influence. Also the half fillegrain decors are still made in Ethiopia, as beads or as halfs, I will place photos. Gr. Ingrid
Joost Daalder March 6, 2015 at 7:56am

I have no difficulty believing that this is Bukharan. The love of pink occurs often there and elsewhere in Uzbekistan, and the somewhat "excessive" swirling is also culturally very typical, while that taste is combined with exquisite craftmanship at the same time. The pink is, I believe, foil, and I can remember having seen it in other instances. The use of turquoises is also characteristic. The exuberance and abundance so striking in the piece are evidence of the wealth in Bukhara at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th c, and I believe the belt probably dates back to that period. I find it a little overpowering myself, having been brought up in a northern European country, but overall I like it. My wife Truus would find this too excessive for her taste - I can see that without even asking. But to each his/her own, and she would not deny that it is impressive in concept and execution.
Joost Daalder March 6, 2015 at 8:24am

I have just learned from Peter that the pink is NOT foil, as I had thought, so it appears to be an interesting effect achieved directly on the silver which is responsible for the colour - most intriguing.