When jewellery is called museum quality — and when it’s not

When jewellery is called museum quality — and when it’s not

by | Opinion

Rethinking jewellery’s worth

When jewellery is called museum quality – and when it’s not

Published September 11, 2025

The other day, I received an email from someone saying they had purchased a museum quality bracelet from the Middle East and wanted me to validate it. That’s not the first time I’ve heard someone describe jewellery as museum quality – sellers use the phrase too. But what does it really mean?

What people think ‘museum quality’ means

The email about the bracelet mentioned that a similar piece was in the collection of a large museum. Could I please confirm whether their bracelet had the same value? Behind this seemingly simple request is a set of common assumptions. When non-museum people use the label museum quality, they usually mean one of three things:

  1. There is a piece just like it in an actual museum collection;
  2. It’s very beautiful, undamaged, and, oddly, sometimes size matters too;
  3. It’s rare or unique – you will not find a comparable piece easily.

Put together, these often add up to a fourth meaning: expensive. If it’s museum quality, surely you’ll be willing to pay more for it.

To put it bluntly: in my view, the term museum quality, more often than not, is used mainly to add prestige for both sellers and buyers: ‘look what I managed to find!’ Maybe it could even play into the desire of collectors to share and show their pieces: what better way to acknowledge your excellent taste than to own a piece similar to one admired by thousands? Of course, it’s always nice to find a parallel in a museum, but does that mean your piece is exceptional?

The thing is that this has very little to do with how museums themselves think about jewellery – and why the question of the e-mailer is impossible to answer for me.

Examples of jewellery in museums: from plastic beads to diamonds

Let’s start with jewellery that is actually in museums. I’ll share two examples with you, which you can also see above: click to enlarge them.

A few years ago, I loaned a few strands of plastic eye-beads to our National Museum of Antiquities. They were literally airport purchases, you know the type – cheap, mass-produced bracelets and keychains.

Does being in a museum suddenly make them museum quality? Nope. Although they were mass-produced and of little material value, they were included in an exhibition on beads because they showed how an ancient symbol, the eye, continues into modern souvenir culture. They illustrated a particular storyline the museum wanted to tell.

Another case is the Zeeman diamond pendant, sold for €30 in 2025. One of these pendants now sits in Antwerp’s diamond museum DIVA. Clearly, a silver pendant with a tiny lab-grown diamond isn’t museum quality in the sense of rarity or luxury.

See more about that particular pendant here, it’s quite the story!

It’s hardly comparable to the diamond necklace of Marie-Antoinette that led to the French Revolution, to name but one famous example. But it is important as cultural evidence. It marks a shift in how diamonds are marketed and consumed, and that makes it valuable for a museum narrative – specifically the story that DIVA aims to research and share.

These examples, both cheap and mass produced items on display in a museum, show why assuming museum quality means ‘expensive’ or ‘rare’ can be misleading.

Parameters that define ‘museum quality’ jewellery

So, what does make a piece of jewellery museum quality? As I said above, the term is often misused in the market as a synonym for ‘exceptional’ or ‘expensive.’ But in reality, museum quality jewellery is defined by a set of parameters that relate to cultural, historical, and ethical significance. Museums decide what to collect based on their mission and research priorities. These are some of the key factors you could think of:

  • Cultural or historical significance – A piece may be important because it reflects social identity, ritual, or everyday life.
  • Representativeness – Museums often collect typical examples of a style or tradition, not just the unusual ones.
  • Rarity and survival – A fragile bead that has survived for centuries may be more important than a mass-produced gold bangle.
  • Condition – While good condition is preferred, damage can sometimes add meaning if it tells a historical story.
  • Contextual value – A piece may be collected because it contributes to a wider narrative.
  • Ethical considerations – Provenance matters more than ever. Museums increasingly reject objects of dubious origin, regardless of their other qualities. A piece of jewellery may be big and beautiful, or filling a lacuna in the collection, but if its provenance can’t be traced, museums will more and more decide to pass on it. Provenance matters, people, I can’t stress that enough!

Taken together, these parameters show that museum quality jewellery is about meaning, not money. Actually, what qualifies as significant for one museum may not even be considered for another.

What about aesthetics…?

But surely, you might think, a truly beautiful, well-preserved piece must be museum quality? Aesthetics do play a role, of course, especially for display. But beauty alone is never enough. It’s almost like real life here.

In fact, aesthetic appeal can be misleading. Some Turkmen jewellery in the Metropolitan Museum of Art has come under scrutiny because several pieces are suspected to have been created more recently, to satisfy collectors’ demand for something ‘museum quality’.

Those pieces have no parallels, no clear provenance that would explain their virtually pristine condition despite being over a century old, there are no old photographs, no historic sources. And…they’re unusually large compared to well-documented Turkmen jewellery of the same age. It needs more research, of course, but firm fact is that copies of traditional jewellery are increasingly sold as authentic, and, there it is again, as ‘museum quality’.

Misuse of the term ‘museum quality’

If you’ve ever browsed antique shops or online listings, you’ve probably seen the phrase museum quality splashed across descriptions every now and then. And for sure, that sounds impressive! It suggests that you’re buying something authentic, rare, and important.

But more often than not, it’s just marketing. Sellers use it in three main ways:

  • To push up the price – labelling a piece as museum quality can make it seem more valuable than it really is.
  • To imply authenticity – if a museum owns something similar, then surely this piece must also be genuine and significant… right?
  • To increase pressure on you to buy – you would not want to pass up that single opportunity to acquire something truly unique, would you?

As a buyer, you can protect yourself by treating museum quality as a red flag rather than a guarantee. It’s not a term used in museum cataloguing. It’s not an accepted standard in the jewellery trade. It’s marketing.

Just to be clear: that doesn’t mean the piece in front of you has no value! It may be exquisite, rare, or historically interesting, or all of the above. But those qualities deserve to be weighed against your personal collection preferences.

Let me just say this: I know of one dealership that has actual museum quality jewellery that makes my jaw drop whenever I visit. I could think of several museums where part of these collections would make for a superb addition. But take note: these dealers never use the term themselves, simply because they don’t need to: their visitors know what they’re looking at and whether that matches their collection preferences.

A piece of jewellery needs to be a right fit for a specific museum – slapping a general term on a random piece just does not make sense. There’s literally no need to loudly and visibly stress that something is ‘museum quality’ – the right museum will decide that for itself, and if their curators are any good, they will spot a right fit for their collection just as easily in a thrift shop as in a high-end gallery.

So, museum quality jewellery is not a universal standard. What one museum chooses to collect, another might not even consider. The term only makes sense when tied to a specific institution and purpose.

What does ‘museum quality’ really mean…?

So, what is museum quality jewellery? It’s not a universally acknowledged label, but a very specific thing. It considers provenance, cultural meaning, representativeness, and context. Museums collect jewellery because it tells human stories: of identity, of daily life, of tradition, and sometimes of global change.

When sellers use museum quality as a catchphrase, it often misleads buyers and blurs the difference between cultural significance and market value. But when we use the term carefully, it becomes a reminder that jewellery is more than material: it’s heritage, story, and identity.

So next time you see that phrase in an Ebay-description…Hold on for a second. Think. Ask questions. Dig deeper. What, exactly, is it about this piece that would make it suitable for a museum? And which museum would that be? And why? As always, it boils down to doing your own due diligence – so you’ll recognize that museum quality piece when it does cross your path!

 

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The Bedouin Silver blog gives credit where credit is due! Transparent referencing and citing sources helps us all grow. Would you like to do the same and quote this article? Here’s how:

S. van Roode, [write the title as you see it above this post], published on the Bedouin Silver website [paste the exact link to this article], accessed on [the date you are reading this article and decided it was useful for you].

The Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog: Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery, and obtained her PhD at Leiden University on jewellery, informal ritual and collections. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only. Sigrid strongly believes in accessibility of knowledge, and aims to provide reliable and trustworthy content: that’s why the Bedouin Silver blog provides references and citations.

When a €30 diamond crashes the system: rethinking jewellery’s worth

When a €30 diamond crashes the system: rethinking jewellery’s worth

by | European jewellery, Opinion

Rethinking jewellery’s worth

When a €30 diamond crashes the system

Updated October 4, 2025

Upheaval in the jewellery world! Last week, Dutch low-budget chain Zeeman released a lab-grown diamond pendant for just under 30 euros. Their claim, in a spin on De Beers’ ‘diamonds are forever’: diamonds are for everyone. This affordable, lab-grown diamond caused quite the stir: jewellery experts hastened to explain the difference between lab-grown and natural diamonds, lawsuits were filed, the Zeeman website crashed because of the number of people trying to get one of these. For me, as a jewellery historian, this is fascinating because of the underlying question: what is the value of jewellery, and who gets to decide it?

The Zeeman diamond pendant controversy

So, what is all the fuss about?

Zeeman is a Dutch, low-budget chain of stores, usually associated with cheap products and low incomes. Just to be clear: no shade to Zeeman, I used to work there as a teen to pay for my school books, and learned quite a lot there, too. It’s not, however, a store that people visit for leisurely shopping. And now, this of all stores releases an affordable diamond pendant… wait, what?

Here’s what they offered: a silver pendant set with a small, round brilliant cut diamond of about 0.10 carats, VS2 clarity, and D–F colour. The diamond is lab-grown, and the pendant was priced at €29.99. The ad was brilliant, too: starting out with sepia-hued casino luxury vibes, it then switched to behind the scenes where everyday people were seen enjoying diamonds. See it here (Dutch spoken, but the imagery says it all)

When the diamond pendant finally went online, thousands of people rushed to buy one. The website crashed under demand, and stock sold out within the hour. A budget retailer, usually associated with socks and cleaning cloths, suddenly had a runaway success with diamond jewellery – that’s in the same league as Meghan Markle’s As Ever sellouts (also: the price of two tins of As Ever flower sprinkles equals one diamond pendant – just so you get an idea).

The controversy, of course, didn’t lag far behind. A Dutch wholesaler, Gisser Jewels, filed a lawsuit against Zeeman, arguing that their advertising was misleading. Zeeman had compared its €29.99 pendant to ‘similar’ pieces sold for hundreds of euros, which competitors said was an unfair comparison. The case was settled and a rectification of the comparison statement issued.

But still, a pendant that cost less than dinner for two found itself at the heart of a very public debate on what jewellery is worth.

Are lab-grown diamonds less ‘real’ than natural diamonds?

One of the first questions raised was, of course, whether these diamonds are ‘real’. The answer is: yes, they are. Lab-grown diamonds are chemically and physically identical to those mined from the earth. They score the same on the Mohs hardness scale, have the same brilliance, and can even be graded in exactly the same way by gemmological institutes. They sparkle just as amazing in candlelight. The only difference is origin.

That difference does carry social and environmental weight. Mining has long been associated with ecological disruption and, in some regions, with labour exploitation and conflict financing. The term ‘blood diamonds’ says it all, wouldn’t you agree?

Lab-grown diamonds sidestep those issues, although they, too, come with their own footprint: the process of creating them costs insane amounts of energy. Still, many see them as a more transparent alternative, and certainly as a more affordable one.

What makes jewellery really valuable? Rethinking jewellery worth

This is where it gets interesting. Because, despite the rectification issued, much of jewellery marketing (actually, any marketing, when you think of it…) does rest on scarcity and exclusivity. Books like Aja Raden’s Stoned and documentaries like Nothing Lasts Forever peel back that history of how desire is created and maintained through careful control of supply and clever advertising. According to these sources, De Beers famously built the 20th-century diamond market on that very idea: diamonds were not inherently rare, but they were presented as such.

We tend to fall back on that way of looking at jewellery: by the worth of its materials alone. But as I wrote earlier, this is a very limited way of thinking about adornment. Jewellery is not just about price tags. It can be made of glass, shell, copper or plastic and still be ‘real’ because its value lies in meaning: in how it is worn, who gave it, what story it carries.

See that earlier blog here: what is real jewellery?

Zeeman’s diamond challenges two long-held assumptions: that diamonds are scarce, and that they must therefore be costly. If both of those are shaken, then what really gives jewellery its worth…?

When jewellery loses (or gains) value: a historical perspective

This isn’t the first time jewellery has faced a shift in how value is perceived. In the 19th century, for instance, jet and gutta-percha were introduced as substitutes for more expensive materials like onyx or tortoiseshell. They were mass-produced and affordable, and at the time, some dismissed them as cheap imitations. But today, Victorian mourning jewellery in jet is prized for its craftsmanship and historical significance – literally prized, as real jet is quite expensive.

Glass, too, has long been used in place of gemstones – sometimes to deceive, often simply to make beauty available to more people. We don’t consider Roman glass intaglios less valuable because they’re not carved in amethyst or garnet; instead, we treasure them for their artistry and survival – and because they tell us a lot about the society that produced them.

That also works the other way around; materials that were once expensive, but now so common we can’t even imagine them as anything else.

Changing jewellery value: aluminium

Take aluminium, for example. In the mid-19th century, this was considered a precious metal. I know, right…? Let that sink in for a moment.

Aluminium was difficult to extract and more valuable than gold. Gold earrings were set with tiny blobs of aluminium – a fashion-forward lady would be showing off the latest of the latest. The pair shown above (click to enlarge the image) must have been worth a small fortune. Napoleon III famously had a set of aluminium cutlery reserved for honoured guests, while less important ones dined with silver. Imagine doing that today!

It was only after mass production was made possible after 1886, that aluminium became a common industrial metal. Those earrings shown above were just about 25 years old at that time, and suffered the same fate as your previous iPhone: expensive on purchase, totally worthless a few years later. Today, they’re expensive again – not because of their material value, but because of their historical value.

Changing jewellery value: amethyst

And did you know amethyst long ranked alongside diamonds as a major gemstone? It was associated with royalty and the Church – until large deposits were discovered in Brazil, amethysts became readily available, and its status plummeted. You can now buy amethysts anywhere, from spiritual shops to your corner jwellery store.

Changing jewellery value: a historical constant

So, in other words, what we see now with lab-grown diamonds is not entirely new. Materials once considered second-rate can, over time, take on new layers of value as they become part of cultural history. And materials once rare and exotic lost their financial value after mass production made them accessible to a larger audience.

I’ve shown you just two examples above, but this ebbing and flowing of material value is a constant throughout history. Fancy types of flint were imported from faraway lands in prehistoric times, iron was a breathtakingly new material for Tutankhamun, glass knocked everyone’s socks off when it was first invented, pearls were super expensive and rare until Mr. Mikimoto invented culturing….the list goes on. Why should the value of diamonds be any different?

The diamond for everyone: what the Zeeman pendant reveals

The run on Zeeman’s webshop shows there is real demand for accessible diamonds. For many, the chance to gift or own a diamond was out of reach until now. And if jewellery is about meaning, about marking moments and relationships, then a €29.99 pendant can absolutely become an heirloom in its own right.

That is what fascinates me most: Zeeman has forced us to look straight at the assumptions of the jewellery trade. Scarcity, prestige, value – they are not fixed truths, but shifting ideas shaped by people, culture and time.

I must admit that as a historian, I quite enjoy how Zeeman stirs things up, holding a mirror up to the jewellery world – and yes, if a second batch is released, I’ll probably be queuing online with everyone else!

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References

See the diamond pendant itself here.

More on the lawsuit is here.

See more on the remarkable rise and fall of aluminium here.

The Bedouin Silver blog gives credit where credit is due! Transparent referencing and citing sources helps us all grow. Would you like to do the same and quote this article? Here’s how:

S. van Roode, [write the title as you see it above this post], published on the Bedouin Silver website [paste the exact link to this article], accessed on [the date you are reading this article and decided it was useful for you].

The Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog: Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery, and obtained her PhD at Leiden University on jewellery, informal ritual and collections. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only. Sigrid strongly believes in accessibility of knowledge, and aims to provide reliable and trustworthy content: that’s why the Bedouin Silver blog provides references and citations.

Please don’t cook with Cartier

Please don’t cook with Cartier

by | Opinion

With love, meghan

Please don’t cook with Cartier

Published September 5, 2025

First, I have a confession to make. I have watched With Love, Meghan. Both seasons, all episodes. Flower sprinkles and scented guest towels hold no secrets for me, and I have been making apple butter by the gallon this last week. But although the show is soothing, relaxing and comforting, there is one thing that makes me really, really anxious as a jewellery person. And that is, you guessed it: the jewellery. With more than my average annual income on her hands (chunky engagement ring with Botswana diamond and gold Cartier tank watch, just to name a few), Meghan happily kneads dough, moulds clay, rinses vegetables… while I watch in rising horror. Because here’s the truth: jewellery is not indestructible, and wearing it while cooking or cleaning can cause damage that even the most skilled conservators cannot always undo.

Why cooking in your jewellery can cause damage

Even pieces made of metal and gemstone – materials that feel solid and enduring – are surprisingly vulnerable to daily wear and tear. Gold, for example, is a relatively soft metal, especially in its higher karat forms. When you rub it against hard surfaces like countertops, or plunge it repeatedly into water, you’re encouraging surface scratches and slow erosion. Stones can loosen from their settings. Clasps weaken. Chains stretch. Prongs bend.

Wearing jewellery while cooking is especially risky. Think of all the small particles of flour, spices, or oils that can work their way into tiny crevices of a ring or a bracelet. Dough in particular is notoriously sticky and persistent – I’ve seen old rings with decades of residue built up beneath the bezel, hardened into something that looks like concrete.

Even washing vegetables can pose a risk. A moment of distraction, and a ring slips off under running water, vanishing into the sink drain before you even notice. I mean, it happened to the Romans: dozens of ring stones were found in the drainage pipes of a bath house in England.

There’s also the issue of sudden temperature changes. Heating and cooling can cause tiny cracks or stress points in certain stones.

Pearls can be dulled by exposure to vinegar or lemon juice, both common kitchen staples. If you’re marinating a salad with your hands, your pearls probably shouldn’t come along for the ride. Or actually, any jewellery.

Jewellery as heritage: why taking care of it matters

But apart from the technical reasons, there’s something deeper at stake here. Jewellery carries history. Even if it’s not antique, every piece becomes a witness to our lives – and not all events should leave their mark. When I see someone wearing an exquisite ring to mould clay, I don’t see luxury, I see loss: the slow withering of stories that could have lasted generations.

And it’s not just emotional sentiment. From a conservation perspective, unnecessary handling of jewellery is a real concern. Museums and collections across the world maintain strict protocols for handling historical jewellery. Gloves are worn not to protect the person, but to protect the piece – oils and acids in human skin can corrode metal, dull gemstones, and cause tarnish. Jewellery conservators avoid even touching stones unless necessary. We know from decades of experience how easily surface damage can accumulate, even when wear feels gentle or casual.

Even more, once damage is done, repair isn’t always straightforward. Restoring a ring that has lost its setting or replacing worn enamel is a skill in its own right – and one that often comes with compromises. Original details might be lost in the process, or replaced with modern materials that don’t quite match. In the world of historical jewellery, ‘untouched’ often carries more value than ‘restored’.

For contemporary jewellery, you might think that repair is easier – and often it is – but some designs, especially from luxury brands, are difficult to repair without sending them back to the maker. Repairs are not just pricey, they’re slow, and often restricted to authorised centres. Damage caused by misuse can even void warranties. Just saying.

A suggestion for With Love, Meghan

Of course, jewellery is meant to be worn. That’s the whole point of it, and one I advocate as well. It lives best when it is close to us, part of our daily rituals. But part of wearing it well, is understanding when not to. Jewellery doesn’t need to be treated like it’s made of spun glass, but neither should it be expected to survive a kitchen workout or a pottery class unscathed. I do wish we’d think twice before whisking cake batter in our grandmother’s engagement ring. It’s not a harmless choice: it’s slow damage, and professional jewellery care and preservation are sometimes as easy as taking your jewellery off at the right moment!

So next time you reach for the flour or the dish sponge, think twice before your jewellery joins in. Because caring for jewellery today means preserving its story for tomorrow.

Also, if I could offer a suggestion to the show: removing one’s jewellery before taking on any crafting or cooking goes a long way to elevating the everyday and lowering my heart rate . Thank you!

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The Bedouin Silver blog gives credit where credit is due! Transparent referencing and citing sources helps us all grow. Would you like to do the same and quote this article? Here’s how:

S. van Roode, [write the title as you see it above this post], published on the Bedouin Silver website [paste the exact link to this article], accessed on [the date you are reading this article and decided it was useful for you].

The Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog: Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery, and obtained her PhD at Leiden University on jewellery, informal ritual and collections. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only. Sigrid strongly believes in accessibility of knowledge, and aims to provide reliable and trustworthy content: that’s why the Bedouin Silver blog provides references and citations.

The Ottoman-style kirdan in the Middle East

The Ottoman-style kirdan in the Middle East

by | Objects

Ottoman jewellery

The Ottoman-style kirdan necklace of the Middle East

Published July 24, 2025

The Ottoman Empire stretched over large parts of North Africa and Southwest Asia. This centuries-long colonisation resulted in jewellery forms that are found all over the region. In this blog, I’ll show you a particular piece that is found with variations throughout the Ottoman world: a choker-like necklace.

What is a kirdan necklace?

The kirdan necklace is a choker-style jewel that forms part of the Ottoman jewellery repertoire. The original ornament is of a type widely used in the 19th century. With regional variations, it was worn from Tunisia to Turkey as well as beyond, on Cyprus, in Greece, and in the Balkans. In the cities, wealthy urban ladies would wear theirs in gold; rural ladies would resort to gilt silver or simply silver, depending on the fashion and traditions of their region.

The ornament consists of a choker-like band of repoussé segments. These may be fastened on to a fabric band, which is tied around the neck or closed with a loop-and-knot, or strung together to form an interlinking band itself. Usually, from the choker multiple pendants are dangling, and it is in the variations and differences of these that we may see regional preferences.

Regional variations of the kirdan

This ornament is generally called kirdan, but goes by many names. Let’s look at some regional variations next!

A postcard from Tunisia, showing a woman in traditional dress and jewellery. She is wearing the chiriyya necklace and pennanular brooches.

The chiriyya in Tunisia and Libya

In North African jewellery traditions, notably in Tunisia and Libya, this ornament went by chiriyya (also spelled chairiyya). In Tunisia, they are worn notably in the southeast, from the town of Sfax onwards. [1] In Libya, they were mainly produced in Tripoli, by artisans who catered to the east coast of Tunisia as well as to Libyan towns and tribes as well. [2]

The choker had a yellow fabric backing, on which the individual segments were sewn. In the centre of the band a square ornament featured. From the choker, large pendants were suspended, and in the centre one or multiple crescent-shaped pendants, executed in filigree, fell onto the chest.

The chiriyya notably does not carry coins, and does not have a central element on the band itself, which sports only the repoussé segments.

Detail of the central part of an Egyptian kirdan on the Bedouin Silver website. This image is part of a research article on the Ottoman-style kirdan in the Middle East.

The kirdan in Egypt: kirdan or kirdan hilali

In Egypt, the necklace is known as kirdan (also spelled kerdan) or kirdan hilali. Here, the segments flank a central element sewn on the band, usually a rectangular or square piece. In the centre, a central pendant falls on the chest: usually, a crescent or a set of tiered crescents, which is where it gets its name from: kirdan hilali means kirdan with crescents. They may be set with small turquoise beads, and the segments themselves are threaded through with red thread. Egypt also uses coins on the kirdan pendants.

The first photo shows a painting of a woman wearing such a necklace: more on her and her jewellery is in this blog!

Coastal Southwest Asia: the kirdan in the Levant

Palestine, western Jordan, Lebanon and western Syria all form part of the Bilad as-Sham, and share a cultural continuum that predates modern borders. Regional variations may extend beyond current borders, and in general trying to delineate exact attributions here is difficult. [3]

The kirdan was worn by both city-, village- and Bedouin women. Finer pieces in gold would be worn by urban women. Compared to North African variations, the coastal Southwest Asian variation generally have more and larger segments – and we also find innovative forms for women who could not afford as many silver or gold segments. They would add beads between the segments, so the kirdan required less precious metal. An example of such a simpler kirdan is shown below.

The kirdan of coastal Southwest Asia uses coins, and has a large variation in forms for the central element on the band.

The kirdan in Syria

For current-day Syria, Kalter notes that the individual segments for the band were purchased directly from silversmiths in Aleppo and Damascus by women themselves, who would then sew them on to a fabric band of their choosing. [4] Below the neck band, a row of coins or imitation coins jingles, and in the centre a single pendant such as crescent or inscribed amulet may hang. The central part of the band could also include a filigree square or rectangle, such as the example above shows, or a colourful red and blue ornament.

The kirdan in Jordan

In El-Kerak, the necklace was called kirdan migwiz. [5] In between the repoussé segments on the band, one or three filigree boxes were present in the central part of the band. Below the band, long silver elements with coins were suspended, and at the front, again one or three elaborate crescent pendants could hang.

The kirdan in Palestine

In Palestine, the necklace went by kirdan. They were made in several places, such as Nablus, but also in Irbid and el-Kerak but worn in Palestine [6] – again, the borders of today have little bearing on the past and the cultural reality is much more varied. In Nablus, the coin pendants are shorter than in El-Kerak. In the centre, an ornament of small tiered crescents fell on the chest. [7] In the Galilee, the coin pendants were similarly short, but the ornament itself also featured very long silver chains with multiple triangular pendants. In the centre of the ornament, the silver chains connected multiple crescent pendants. The style of the pendants is widespread in a larger region, including Syria.

The kirdan in Eastern Southwest Asia

Eastern Jordan and Syria, bordering on Iraq, were a bit more distant from the Ottoman world – the Ottoman sphere of influence mainly concentrated around the Mediterranean littoral. But we see cultural influences nonetheless, where Ottoman forms travelled on trade routes and gradually developed into styles of their own. In Kurdistan the choker was still worn, and the dangles often take the shape of fish – a form also encountered further on in Afghanistan.

Black and white photo of Egyptian dancer Taheyya Carioca with a a gold-coloured kirdan necklace on her hip.

Stage forms of the kirdan

One particular use of the kirdan is in an exaggerated version as stage jewellery. This was worn by dancers, mainly in Egypt. From the mid-19th century onwards, we see the kirdan in its usual size worn by dancers. The image above shows a phot of such a dancer (click to enlarge it). Around the turn of the century, the hilal pendants started to get larger, and from the 1950s onwards, entertainers would be wearing huge kirdans – of course, its sight really adds to the performance! [8]

A bracelet made of a repurposed kirdan necklace.

Repurposing of the kirdan

Because they fell out of fashion at some point, you may come across repurposed kirdans. They have often been divided up into bracelets.

The legacy of Ottoman kirdan chokers: forgotten heritage

The general Ottoman origin of this piece appears to be increasingly forgotten, and the reality of cultural interaction is hindered by thinking in today’s borders.

It is virtually impossible to distinguish between Tunisian and Libyan chiriyya, because the craftsmen that made them operated in both countries and pieces made in one country would be sold on a market in the other.

Likewise, trying to determine whether a piece is Syrian or Jordanian does not make much sense, as most likely, it was produced before either country as we know it today existed. Rather, it would be better to see if a place of production could be determined, in the full knowledge that from there, it may have been traded to at least 4 different countries as they exist today.

These pieces of jewellery remind us of a shared heritage. That is the historical jewellery value they continue to carry, and I do love how they took on a new life and new meanings on their own in the various parts of the Ottoman realm!

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References

[1] S. Gargouri-Sethom 1986. Le Bijou Traditionnel en Tunisie, p. 24, with examples.

[2] S. Gargouri-Sethom 1986. Le Bijou Traditionnel en Tunisie, p. 65; Ghellali, H. 2024. Jewellery and Adornment of Libya. Blikveld Uitgevers Publishers, Zandvoort

[3] J. Kalter, M. Pavaloi & M. Zerrnickel (eds) 1992. The Arts and Crafts of Syria, p. 81 already notes this.

[4] J. Kalter, M. Pavaloi & M. Zerrnickel (eds) 1992. The Arts and Crafts of Syria, p. 90, with examples.

[5] Pracht und Geheimnis, p. 388-389.

[6] J. Rahab 1989. Palestinian Costume, p. 121.

[7] Pracht und Geheimnis, p. 265.

[8] See this reel by Heather D. Ward on the kirdan in dance costumes

The Bedouin Silver blog gives credit where credit is due! Transparent referencing and citing sources helps us all grow. Would you like to do the same and quote this article? Here’s how:

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The Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog: Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery, and obtained her PhD at Leiden University on jewellery, informal ritual and collections. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only. Sigrid strongly believes in accessibility of knowledge, and aims to provide reliable and trustworthy content: that’s why the Bedouin Silver blog provides references and citations.

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Bodemjuweeltjes/Gems Unearthed

Bodemjuweeltjes/Gems Unearthed

by | Museums & Exhibitions

Archaeological jewellery

Bodemjuweeltjes/Gems Unearthed

Published July 4, 2025

Humans have been making and wearing jewellery for thousands of years. In fact, the first non-utilitarian objects ever created by humans were items of personal adornment. When you have been following this blog, you know jewellery is more than decoration—it’s a genuine historical source. Each excavated piece gives us a new perspective on our past and ourselves. It reveals trade routes, cultural connections, social hierarchy, and spiritual beliefs. Bodemjuweeltjes/Gems Unearthed is an exhibition in the Zeeuws Museum, The Netherlands, that discusses precisely these themes – so I had to go and see!

Gems Unearthed: the theme of the exhibition

Gems Unearthed invites visitors to think about these meanings while appreciating the objects themselves—pendants, chains, rings, bracelets, brooches, buckles, and hairpins, some several thousand years old. I appreicated that the introduction included an explanation of what we miss: only what has survived is on display. Metals like bronze and gold, glass, and gemstones have endured, while organic materials such as textiles and plant fibres have largely decayed.

The exhibition also features a strong selection of pieces from the early Middle Ages (my favourite!), a time when it was common to bury people in their finest clothes and jewellery. The exhibition fills three rooms in the museum – so let me walk you through!

Medieval glass beads in vibrant colours against a black background. This photo is part of an article on archaeological jewellery on the Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog.
Showcase with rings in the exhibition Bodemjuweeltjes, with four photos of gold rings inserted into the image. This photo is part of a blog article on the Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog.

Gems Unearthed: archeological jewellery

The first room focuses on archaeological jewellery. One thing I appreciated was the way the pieces were displayed at different levels, corresponding to their age: older items at the bottom, newer ones higher up – just like archaeological layers. You can see what I mean in the photos above: click to enlarge them to take in the details. It’s a great way to show development over time, and I thought it was well designed. The display levels even use different earthy tones to enhance the layered effect.

However, I’m not sure all visitors will pick up on this… because the room is very dark. Like, well and truly dark. While the jewellery itself is well lit and stands out, the overall lighting (or should I say lack of it) makes it hard to read the explanatory texts on the brochure that visitors receive. The texts on the sides of the showcases, indicating which level corresponds to which time period, are also hard to read.

This room opens with one of the oldest known pieces from the Netherlands: a boar’s tooth pendant dating from around 9000–4000 BCE. The showcases are organised by jewellery type, so you’ll find showcases dedicated to pendants, rings, necklaces, bracelets…I like how the chronological layout helps place them in context, so even when you’re just admiring the pieces, you’ll get a sense of their relative age and development.

Glass chevron beads against a dark background. The image shows how these beads are constructed, and is part of an article on the Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog.
Photo of part of a bone, from which small discs have been perforated to serve as beads. This image is part of an article on the Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog.
Image showing a brigh showcase with chunky amber beads, and three beads enlarged next to it. The beads were excavated in the Netherlands. This image is part of an article on the Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog.

Gems Unearthed: production and craftmanship

The next room is dedicated to jewellery production, and it’s much brighter. I found this section especially interesting because it explains how these items were made, showing techniques and tools that help you understand the craftsmanship involved. It shows moulds and half products, and touches on recycling: this happened quite often in the past. Just one example is a fibula (a clothing pin) made with an Arab coin which was found in the province of Friesland.

There is a selection of stones and gems, including a practice stone for intaglio cutting – every craft needs practising, and this is a piece I love! A beautiful set of chunky amber beads, along with garnets, Meerschaum, jet and more illustrates the range of materials used.

A separate showcase deals with the production of beads: Roman mosaic glass inlays, recycled for their glass in the early Middle Ages, 17th century glass beads known as chevron beads, consisting of multiple layers of glass (and a few misfits), a piece of bone used to cut out small beads in a monastery…while small, this room manages to pack in quite a few techniques and materials!

Photocollage showing traditional Dutch clasp and head ornaments in gold, against a background of jewellery drawings. This image is part of an article on the Bedouin SIlver Jewellery Blog.
Three gold rings from Zeeland, the Netherlands, and a drawing of a woman in traditional Zeeland dress. This collage is part of an article on the Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog.
Photocollage of archaeological jewellery. This image is part of a blog article on the reliabe and fully referenced Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog.

Gems Unearthed: traditional Zeeland jewellery

The third and final room is even brighter and focuses on traditional jewellery from the museum’s own region. I really enjoyed this part! It features a careful selection of local gold and silver jewellery, jewellers’ drawings, and images of people wearing these pieces. There’s also a section on filigree, which played an important role in local traditions. In this way, the last room ties together what you’ve seen earlier: design patterns that go back centuries and a continuing story of skilled production.

Gems Unearthed: an overview of archaeological and traditional jewellery

This is a lovely exhibition: small, but with a lot of beautiful items presented in a coherent manner! The publication accompanying the exhibition is also a delight: a magazine-style publication, offering more insights on some of the pieces shown as well as personal insights by collectors and curators alike on a really wide variety of jewellery-related topics.

The exhibition texts are available in both Dutch and English, so you’ll be able to enjoy the full range of information.

All in all, should you find yourself in The Netherlands, this exhibition is definitely worth a trip to Zeeland!

More on the exhibition is on the website of the Zeeuws Museum.

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Find out more about the history of jewellery in the e-course!

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The Bedouin Silver blog gives credit where credit is due! Transparent referencing and citing sources helps us all grow. Would you like to do the same and quote this article? Here’s how:

S. van Roode, [write the title as you see it above this post], published on the Bedouin Silver website [paste the exact link to this article], accessed on [the date you are reading this article and decided it was useful for you].

The Bedouin Silver Jewellery Blog: Sigrid van Roode

Sigrid van Roode is an archeologist, ethnographer and jewellery historian. Her main field of expertise is jewellery from North Africa and Southwest Asia, as well as archaeological and archaeological revival jewellery. She has authored several books on jewellery, and obtained her PhD at Leiden University on jewellery, informal ritual and collections. Sigrid has lectured for the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, Turquoise Mountain Jordan, and many others. She provides consultancy and research on jewellery collections for both museums and private collections, teaches courses and curates exhibitions. She is not involved in the business of buying and selling jewellery, and focuses on research, knowledge production, and education only. Sigrid strongly believes in accessibility of knowledge, and aims to provide reliable and trustworthy content: that’s why the Bedouin Silver blog provides references and citations.