Gallery

Comments

• 

  Patricia Deany October 16, 2012 at 3:13am

  Here is what looks like a vintage Himalayan treasure that was introduced a long time to us. I have seen these in books of ethnic jewelry but have never seen one in person or for sale. Possibly Howah could share with us where he found this.
• 

  howah October 16, 2012 at 12:03pm

  Hi Patricia,

   

  I found this one at the the antique market in Beijing, China some years ago. These types of milk pail hooks that are worn on the belt by Tibetan ladies can still be found for sale at antique markets and on the internet. However, this one is in my opinion of a higher quality due to the intricate work on it. Simpler versions are more readily available, but prices for authentic older Tibetan jewelry are on the rise and vary enormously. Sometimes ridiculous prices are quoted for very simple items.

  I have another milk pail hook in my possession and a photo of it can be found in my photos collection. I will send you some photos of Tibetan ladies wearing these types of milk pail hooks and also some internet links that have these for sale. I hope I have been helpful!
• 

  Patricia Deany October 16, 2012 at 12:51pm

  Thanks, I will have to keep my eye out for one of these on the internet. The stones are lovely-- I am assuming the middle stone is some kind of light blue turquoise . Does any of the Tibetan jewelry to your knowledge bear maker's marks or hallmarks?
• 

  howah October 16, 2012 at 2:09pm

  Hi Pat,

  The top 2 smaller reddish/orange stones are real coral. The middle 3 big stones are actually imitations of coral and turquoise. Based on my experience, it's rare to find big size genuine coral and turquoise stones on Tibetan jewelry these days. Often imitation and dyed stones are used and other types of semi-precious stones are now in vogue that were previously never used. Stones do fall out of the cavities over time and are then replaced by cheaper imitation stones since the colour of the stones can also convey the original symbolic meaning of the original stones.

  I have never found hallmarks on Tibetan items. I guess because majority was made for nomads and certain types of Tibetan jewelry, like the milk pail hook, are actually also for practial use so a hallmark would be of little concern to both owner and maker.

  Hallmarks do appear on Mongolian items, but those were more often made for the Mongolian aristrocracy and are often of very high craftsmanship. These hallmarks are almost always in Chinese and mention the name or the silversmith's workshop because the silversmiths were often of Chinese origin, but that's a whole other discussion.  

   

   
• 

  Joost Daalder October 28, 2012 at 1:16pm

  Nice piece, howah. You will perhaps remember the one which occurs in *Ethnic Jewellery and Adornment*? It's another good early and nicely made example. We have owned that one for some considerable time. I agree with you that good ones are now hard to get and would inevitably be expensive. I give the URL here, so that those who don't own the book can see it. I re-posted it on the Facebook page "Ethnic Jewellery and Adornment* recently, together with many other Tibetan pieces, from various sources. The pieces got an excellent response: people have for long liked Tibetan art, and interest is still going. URL for our milkhook: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151142616918049&set=a.....