Picture 1 shows a conch shell encased in silver and a turquoise end piece, while the hole on the other side (picture 2) enables the user to produce a deep, far-reaching sound by using the embouchure of a trumpet player. The horn was sounded to summon monks to prayer. Continue Reading
This Uzbeki variant of the Turkoman siradjna was worn by women over a big, upright hat-like headdress, in such a way that the central piece was placed at some considerable distance above the nose. Continue Reading
This headdress is virtually identical in design to the example shown in Hannelore Gabriel’s authoritative Jewelry of Nepal, p. 74, a so-called lunya swan; probably Newar work. It is worn like a hat on the back of the head. Continue Reading
An almost identical example appears on p. 30 of Tibet: a Lost World (1978) , by Valrae Reynolds, which deals with the Newark Collection. Reynolds describes this as a man’s hair ornament, “tied to a silk or cotton scarf. This ornament was worn at a sharp angle over one eye”. See also a photo in… Continue Reading
These bird-shaped earrings come from Khiva, Uzbekistan. The main part is made of very fine gilt silver with first-class filigree work, inlaid with micro-mosaic turquoises, a coral forming the eye of the bird, and a piece of “mutton-fat” jade in the body and coral tassels. Continue Reading