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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Beautiful pair Lynn,I like the applied chain work very much. Br
Wow, these are lovely, Lynn! Golden Triangle would be my guess too - but I can't help with any more details, I am afraid... They look comfortable to wear. Are they?
Lynn, I have been offered ones a pair of cuffs of this kind of moveable structure and those came from Afghanistan. Are these also moveable? Gr. Ingrid.
Thank you Sami, Betty, and Ingrid for your comments.
@Ingrid, the central silver part of these cuffs is very thick and heavy so they are not adjustable. (see below the rim on the right cuff)
@Betty, yes they are very comfortable even though they are 200 grams each.
I can see now. The ones I was writing about only had those knitted outside. Perhaps they do exist both with a solid lining and without for the not so fortunate buyers. Also they did not have those beautiful placques. but the system is the same and that still may indicate them to be from that area.
Thank you Ingrid. There are similar contemporary cuffs which are thinner and flexible that are still being made, but they are usually labelled as "Miao/Hmong." Here is an example of a contemporary cuff on etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/189440893/traditional-hmong-fluted-cuf...
That is not to say they can't be from Afghanistan, just that I have not seen them from there yet. :)
Lynn, that is getting close, except they were old and very flexable. No further knowledge. Yours is a beautiful set for sure I 'll keep my eyes open. Gr. Ingrid.
Lynn, these are very probably from the Miao or a related group in south west China. Many pieces from that part of the world regularly get confused with similar but not identical ones in the Golden Triangle. Several groups in the Golden Triangle in fact came to that part of the world from SW China, and there is still interaction. We should distinguish between Miao and Hmong production. The Hmong are "the Miao in China", but Miao jewellery is usually these days not as good in silver content as that in the Golden Triangle, and it is much more common, though the quality of workmanship is superb in both areas. All that said, these *could* in fact be Hmong, but far more often they are Miao (and in that case not rare). Yours do however have some individual traits which might just indicate that they are Hmong. If so that is a great advantage, though that is not to say they aren't good jewellery if they are Miao: just that the Hmong examples are more valuable. The ratio of Miao vs Hmong pieces seen these days is something like ten to one. Hmong materials came to the West in a big way in the 80s but have "dried up" since, and are now much harder to obtain. Miao pieces are still much easier to buy, including many modern ones, most of which are no longer traditional looking, though some traditional forms are still being made. You can check Miao jewellery very easily on eBay.
These are, of course, NOT identical, but they belong to a large group of this type of cuffs from the Miao which all have the same basic shape but with quite a few variations. I posted these on the Ethnic Jewels and Adornment page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/365830083048/photos/pb.365830083048.-22075....
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