Gallery

Comments

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  Patricia Deany September 26, 2011 at 10:18pm

  Love this! So much calligraphy all over it. Is it old? Turkoman or Turkish?
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  Suzan Kaplan September 27, 2011 at 11:35pm

  What an amazing ring! I went to your website at http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/product_view/craftsofthepast/3857854/ to discover it's story but the story/inspiration wasn't linked.
  
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  Anna Garner September 27, 2011 at 11:59pm

  I'm sorry, Suzan.  Here is the complete link.  

  Turkoman 2-story ring
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  Suzan Kaplan September 28, 2011 at 3:40am

  Thank you Anna, yes, I found that page, but there is a section titled "Inspiration/Story behind this product" and then "Our life in Afghanistan" should I to be able to click there?
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  Anna Garner September 28, 2011 at 4:22am

  Ah, now I see what you mean.  That particular section at that e-commerce host is actually for handmade items made by the seller of the item.  I should have left the section completely blank.  I rather blithely wrote in *My Life in Afghanistan* because that is where I was able to see a stronger Turkoman influence than in many places in Turkey, where I had also lived for a while.  Thank you for your patience.  

  Anna
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  Suzan Kaplan September 28, 2011 at 5:33am

  Someday it would be great to hear about your life in Afghanistan and Turkey! You website is lovely.
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  Anna Garner September 28, 2011 at 2:38pm

  You are very kind to say that.  Do people blog on such things at this site?  I could tell a bit of the story on my blog here if you think it would interest anyone besides you.  Or you can just ask me questions and I can answer.  I don't mind sharing my experiences of traveling and amassing the wonderful cultural artifacts I have.  The website at Artfire is a tiny beginning.  I have very few museum quality things for sale as yet, but some eventually will be listed, out of necessity.  In retirement those things happen.  I am fortunate to have hung onto such treasures for this long.  

  Thank you again, Suzan.

  Anna
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  Patricia Deany September 28, 2011 at 3:45pm

  You are welcome to talk about your experiences on your blog. A lot has changed in a relatively short amount of time to the developing nations from which  these treasures were gathered. YOur personal stories and impressions about the origins of your pieces enhances their value in every way and informs us of their history and importance within their source culture. The way that these treasured pieces come to us can reflect a family's and a nations history and we can gain knowledge of them as adornment, symbols and  hard cash, savings accounts, as it were,for the people who have parted with them.
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  Anna Garner September 28, 2011 at 4:31pm

  I am so happy to find this place.  We are so much more sympatico with these ethnic pieces, not so much as curios as all those things you named in your post, Patricia.  This hoard of jewels that my family has enjoyed accumulating for all these years now are helping to add to our monetary health -- well, only a bit, because I have only sold a few of the less significant pieces so far.  Thank you for your invitation.  I will start a blog here after I give my in-person story to a community group that has invited me to wear a lot of jewelry and bring some show and tell in order to give substance to my oral presentation.  That happens tomorrow so today I will some time in preparation for it.  Then I can concentrate on writing a short introduction to an on-going blog.  

  Anna
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  Patricia Deany September 28, 2011 at 5:25pm

  You will have a faithful reader in me. I have shown and talked about some of my jewelery before and it is always great fun because there is always a story behind it no matter if I bought it at its source or bought it off of ebay -- simply because of  the long tradition of hope and loss  which accompanies it no matter how obtained.  The adornment of traditional peoples is inextricably woven into the fabric of their spiritual and everyday reality and seems so much more meaningful than our own adornment.