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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Comments
I love this piece. so wearable....
I recently picked up some very nice hallmarked pendants from one of these necklaces, I was wrongly advised that they were Tunisian, I shall no redress my ideas thank you Sigrid. I was also told that the pendants are often found with one piece of the fork snapped off as this shows the amount of children the wearer has....do you have any opinion on that?
Warm wishes
Sarah
Hi Sarah,
Yes, sometimes one of the ends has been broken off, in Egypt is said to be a sign that the mother bore a son. However, the practise of wearing this necklace is not the same everywhere: in some areas the number of pendants actually indicates the number of children, sometimes they are worn in larger quantities, but in general they all indicate the same status i.e. a mother. Weissenberger (1998) offers more information on these pendants in the publication of Frank Bliss, partially based on earlier research by Peter Schienerl.
I had a look at the pendant on your website and the stamp appears to be Libyan in fact! So it fits nicely into the region!