Silver of the Possessed
Jewellery of the Egyptian zar
Silver of the Possessed
Published on May 2, 2024
A book by myself this time! Silver of the Possessed brings you the historic and cultural context of Egyptian zār jewellery: what is Egyptian zār jewellery and how may we recognize it?
What is zār?
Zār is a possession cult that was brought into Egypt in the 19th century. It arrived there because of the slave trade: zār is an African possession cult, introduced in Egypt by enslaved women of colour from Ethiopia. And that was not just in Egypt: zār is found in a large area. It is practised differently everywhere: zār in Sudan is different from that in Egypt, and both are different from zār in Oman or Iran.
In all varieties, the general idea is that a person can become possessed by a spirit. This spirit then can make the human host very uncomfortable – until it gets what it wants. One thing to keep in mind is that the spirit will not leave: when its requests are met, it will generally leave the human host in peace, but it stays with the person for the rest of their lives. During a zār, the possessed enter a trance stage during which communication with the spirit is possible.
The Egyptian zār has a unique feature, and that is the use of silver jewellery with images of spirits.
Zār jewellery
And those jewellery pieces are popular collector’s items today. You’ll see several examples in the images in this blog: click on any one of them to enlarge them. While these pieces are very popular, it is not quite clear what they did in the ritual, or who is depicted on them.
And apart from these pieces, there is a lot that is labelled ‘zār’, but is all of that really zār jewellery? How can we tell the difference between regular jewellery and zār jewellery?
You’ll find many different bits and pieces of information on the individual spirits, on the use of jewellery, and of zār itself….but it’s not always easy to tell what’s what. So, I decided to dive into this topic several years ago, and what I found was so much more than I’d ever thought possible!
Zār jewellery in museums and private collections
This book is the result of combing through endless pages of literature from the 19th and 20th century, but also of studying collections of zār jewellery: in museums, and in private collections. I can’t begin to tell you how much fun I had going over so many pieces of jewellery – although entering them all into a database was tedious work at times, it can’t all be glamour and bling!
I have seen well over 1,200 pieces, and while I was describing all these, I started to note changes over time. Zār jewellery from the 1920s looks very different from that of the 1970s – why could that be? And what about all those pieces of jewellery that were absolutely made for zār, but that are so rare these days that no private collections holds these, only very few museums…?
Silver of the Possessed: zār jewellery in context
So what will you find in this book? My goal was to place jewellery of the Egyptian zār in its cultural and historical context. So first, I traced how our current understanding of this jewellery has evolved through collecting and publishing: how do we know what we think we know? Turns out there is quite a lot of copy-and-not-exactly-paste that has influenced our view on these pieces!
Next, I go over jewellery from several angles. Its cultural background in African possession cults can be translated into a new insight of the many roles jewellery played in zār. That comes with a handy table of 5 categories of zār jewellery, so you’ll know how to identify them correctly!
I also looked at jewellery as a financial asset to zoom in on its implications for household economy dynamics, And, ever the archaeologist, I traced the developments in this jewellery over seven decades: interestingly, those changes in jewellery reveal changes in the ritual itself.
For me, the most exciting part is how this jewellery may function as an actual historic source: these jewellery items shed light on the world view of their wearers, and as such form an unexpected additional source for late 19th and early 20th century Egypt. You can actually ‘read’ these pieces, and I’m sharing how I did that.
Egyptian zār jewellery: a catalogue
And of course, there is a catalogue! Over 100 previously unpublished jewellery items in private collections illustrate the changes in this jewellery over the course of nearly a century – you’ll be able to date yours based on these examples, and another handy table with 5 things to look for.
The best things in life are free
…and sometimes, that includes books. When you have been following this blog for a while, you know I value accessible knowledge. That is why my courses are not ridiculously priced (well, maybe ridiculously low), and also why I partnered with Sidestone Press for this publication. No matter where you are in the world, you will always be able to read this book online – for free.
To make it even better, I have opted for full open access publication of this book. That means that you get to download the pdf of the book when it is released on June 27th. Also completely free.
So, as you see, there is literally no sales pitch here: I’m giving you this book as a free pdf.
However… if you are anything like me, and prefer a printed copy: we’ve got those, too. Speaking for myself here, I spend too much time as it is looking at screens, and I am a total book nerd as you know, so I prefer to sit down with a cup of something good and just flip through actual book pages. The printed copies come at a very reasonable price – and with a pre-order discount until June 27th!
The choice is all yours!
(final thought: the blazing artwork on the cover is ‘Red Wind: Fire’ by Salma Ahmad Caller, and that just looks glorious in print. Just saying.)
More about Silver of the Possessed
Silver of the Possessed. Jewellery in the Egyptian zar
By Sigrid van Roode (2024). 212 pages, full-colour, in English. Published by Sidestone Press.
Available with the publisher for pre-order: the book will be released on June 27th. Check their options for ordering from the UK and USA: this will save you import hassle and shipping costs!
This book is the result of my PhD-research.
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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].
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. 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.