bedouin silver
The world of personal adornment from North Africa and Southwest Asia learn to read jewellery in just 15 minutes a day!wondering how to organize your collection? Get your free roadmap here!Welcome!
Looking to find out more on jewellery and personal adornment from North Africa and Southwest Asia? You’ve come to the right place! Whether you are a curator or collector, an expat or dancer, or have inherited personal adornment, these pieces have crossed your path. You would love to know more about them and their world.
Objects of personal adornment are more than adornment only: they are heritage. They tell us about the lives of women in the way that no history book does. They communicate identity and values from within.
This website is for you: from jewellery details to book recommendations to collection management tips…this is your one stop-portal for everything related to personal adornment from North Africa and Southwest Asia. Read on to explore the world of jewellery, dress and body aesthetic!
About me
I am Sigrid van Roode, jewellery historian and archaeologist. My story with personal adornment began over 25 years ago. I came across traditional silver jewellery for the first time in Cairo, and realized that like archaeology, which I work with on a daily basis, these pieces are heritage. They are a historic source, and have so much to tell about the world they come from!
I work with museums and private collections to ensure this heritage has a long and meaningful future. I write books, curate exhibitions, give talks and in general love to share the stories of adornment. This website contains plenty of those: I wish you happy browsing!
Join the e-course
See the bigger picture
An e-course about adornment from North Africa and Southwest Asia…ready for you to enjoy whenever and wherever you want!
Traditional jewellery links us with five millennia of history and three continents: see for yourself how your pieces ‘click’ into a bigger picture. By looking at dress and adornment the lives, dreams, fears and hopes of generations of women reveal themselves.
In this one-of-a-kind online course, I am sharing two decades of research with you in bite-sized episodes of 15 minutes. No need to carve out extra time in your schedule: sit back, relax and enjoy a journey filled with stunning jewellery items during your coffee break!
Partners I have worked with
Losing sight
the decline in knowledge Losing sight Traditional jewellery is disappearing at a fast rate. It is no longer made in the quantities past generations would need, and it is being sold both in the countries of origin as well as in the regions of the world where collectors...
articles
Explore
An ever expanding collection of articles is waiting for you on the blog. Here, you will find dozens of articles that cover everything related to adornment and culture from North Africa and Southwest Asia. Whether you are looking for organization tips for your collection or background information about the magical aspects of jewellery, the blog is an excellent place to start – click on the image to the left for the latest post or follow the link to the blog!
