Restringing ethnic jewellery

Restringing ethnic jewellery

by | Tips for collectors

ethnic necklaces

Restringing ethnic jewellery

Published Jan 19, 2024

‘This necklace is on its original stringing’ is something you may read in jewellery descriptions. But what does ‘original stringing’ mean? In this article, I’ll zoom in on stringing and restringing: it’s cultural context and 5 practical points to inspect when checking for restringing.

Ethnic jewellery: the many lives of necklaces

What I love about ethnic jewellery is that these jewellery pieces lived. They were part and parcel of everyday life, they moved along with their wearers, they bumped into other things, they got dented, banged up, damaged.

Take a necklace, for example. It may have been gifted to a bride on her wedding day, or assembled from treasured beads by a girl. It was worn on festive occasions or maybe every day, it was seen, admired and cherished.

And at one point during its long life, it broke. The thread snapped, perhaps after a sharp edge of a bead had chafed at it relentlessly, or simply because years of wear finally made it give way.⁠

It was repaired, and at that point may have been embellished: another silver bead added because finances had been good, maybe another amber bead found its way in the composition as well…

And there you have it: a second incarnation of the same necklace. Rinse and repeat: one necklace may have been repaired or changed countless times.⁠

An antique Kabyle necklace with coral and silver pendants
Close-up of a spectacular Amazigh Berber necklace from the Draa Valley in Morocco, showing its abundance in coral, amber and trade beads

Restringing ethnic jewellery: a part of life

Now this applies to straightforward, single strand necklaces, but also to beaded necklaces with multiple strands, lots of beads, silver amulets strewn in between…pieces like these would eventually break, once or several times, and be repaired.

That is for example visible in the Kabyle necklace in the gallery above. Clicking it will enlarge the image. It is still on an original stringing as the wearer had intended it, but upon closer inspection, the pendants are not all of the same age. Some have lost all their enamel, while others still have it; some have become smoothly worn, while others look more crisp. This necklace has been restrung at least once, in which a different selection of pendants was made.

Necklaces might also intentionally have been taken apart to be restrung with newly acquired beads, or to be divided up into smaller necklaces for children.⁠

The point is that a piece you see *today* is not necessarily the same as when it was first created. Jewels were altered over time, adapted, improved, taken apart, made smaller…altering ethnic jewellery is a regular practice.

A heavy silver Omani somt necklace with Maria Theresia Thalers
A gorgeous heavy silver somt necklace from Oman

Restringing ethnic jewellery: an example from Oman

A great example are these two necklaces from Oman: click the photos above to see both necklaces.

The first necklace is an older one that is still on its last stringing. The thick hemp rope has darkened over time, the knot at the closure is frayed, and the dirt is also visible between and underneath the beads. A trick often used to make a necklace look old, is to darken its stringing. Looking between and underneath the beads may help assert if it actually has been worn, or that it just looks that way.

The second necklace is on a clean rope. You also see how the necklace is closed in a very different way: the two ends have been stitched together. It is much younger: this piece was a gift to a foreign teacher in the 1980s. Her Omani students wanted to present her with a parting gift, and financed this necklace together. The teacher never wore it, but instead treasured it at home.

Both are on original stringing, but one has not been worn as intensively as the other. And what is more: necklaces like these were restrung from time to time, too. [1] When the rope would get too stained or dirty, or new beads or pendants were added, the necklace would be restrung in its entirety.

Old silver jewellery in Marrakech
Glinting Maria Theresia Thalers in a silversmith's workshop, Amman
Old silver jewellery in Cairo's Khan el Khalili

Restringing ethnic jewellery: materials

This continuous stringing and restringing also means that it is perfectly possible for new materials to sit next to older ones. It’s not uncommon to find plastic beads added to coral, or to see newer coin pendants find their way into a necklace of older ones. As the photos above show (click to enlarge them), you will find bits and pieces of older jewellery lying around in just about every workshop from Marrakech to Cairo and beyond.

Because of these elements, the necklace forms a biography of the culture of its wearers. Who were they in contact with, who did they trade with, what materials made an appearance? Nylon fishing line, for example, has been in use since the 1960s to string necklaces with – it’s not necessarily a sign of modern stringing.

And that brings me to another aspect of restringing: the composition of a necklace.

Coral and amber Draa Valley necklace

Restringing ethnic jewellery: composition

There is, generally speaking, a set of standards within a culture as to what a necklace is supposed to look like.  It’s a ‘type’ of necklace that is specific to a particular group, tribe, region etc. The individual components may vary, but the overall lay-out remains the same.

Over time, these compositions change, too: fashion will always play a part in how ethnic necklaces are created. The next generation always wants to do things a little differently, and these changes are visible in small or large details.

Looking at old photographs can be very helpful here (bearing in mind the complications these may bring – read more about that here). Looking at jewellery that has with certainty been collected before a particular date, or that has been in a family for generations, is also very helpful (you did not really think you were getting an article without me pointing out the importance of provenance, did you…?).

Restringing ethnic jewellery: our coloured view

So, the jewellery that we see, is the end result of years of threads breaking, fashions changing, beads bought, silver traded for cash, new elements acquired, dividing up larger necklace among kids…there is a depth of life behind these that is just amazing.

But these last incarnations are the ones that get published in jewellery books, shown in exhibitions and presented online. And that is often when they ‘freeze’: they are taken out of their living context, shown as beautiful objects in their own right, and become the main sources for studying jewellery.

The last composition we see, can’t readily be used to unequivocally establish that this is how a piece of jewellery always is ‘supposed’ to look. ⁠Not on the level of ‘but there are supposed to be three blue beads here’, anyway. But what they are very useful for, is establishing what the predilections of the time were, what the overall design is and which materials were in use.

Restringing ethnic jewellery: how is a piece presented to you?

By now, I suppose it will be clear that restringing is standard practice. But I’m guessing that is not what you want to know…because ‘original stringing’ often is connected to a form of authenticity. ‘This is the real deal’, that sort of thing. A restrung necklace however, can be just as real.

The thing to be aware of is how a necklace is presented to you. I have seen pieces presented as ‘19th century on original stringing’, but including beads that did not exist in the 19th century.

There is a fine line between original restringing, and modern compositions made to look old. What you really want to know, is the difference between the two.

Restringing ethnic jewellery: how to check for restringing

Restringing is the norm, not the exception. But how to see if you’re looking at an actually old piece, or a new one made to look original? Here are five tips:

1 – You will need to be aware of styles and types worn by the particular people the piece is from, and the timeframe it is supposed to be from. There’s no escaping that. Look at the overall composition carefully;

2 – Next, zoom in and see if the individual materials used match with that timeframe. Again, it’s not uncommon, for example, for plastic beads to find their way into an incarnation of a necklace, but when this is presented to you as ’19th century, never altered’ that is cause for concern;

3 – Zoom in a little further and check if the thread has been artificially aged: inspect the space between the beads and in the bead openings. Do note however that when a necklace is densely strung, the thread may remain cleaner than the rest;

4- Inspect the closure. This is often altered over time to allow for easier wearing. Here again, it helps to be aware of how these pieces were fastened. A loop-and-knot/bead/coin closure can be, but is not always the original way of fastening a necklace (and please remember that nothing is easier to pick up a stray coin to use – coins do not automatically date a piece of jewellery). S-hooks almost always indicate restringing.

5- Read the description carefully, if it concerns a necklace on offer. Does it say ‘in the style of’ or ‘based on’ or ‘composed of’? That indicates restringing or even a design creation by the seller.

And there is nothing wrong with that, by the way! In fact, all of my ethnic Dutch necklaces have been restrung, for example – I don’t want them to break when I wear them. Also the replacement of closures with S-hooks is nothing dramatic, and in fact adapts the necklace to a new stage in its life where it is wearable again.

Just as long as one is transparent about what is simply restringing, and what is altering (or even designing) the composition itself.

Restringing ethnic jewellery: living jewellery

Jewellery is not frozen in time, but grows old with us, and like us, changes appearances along the way. We see its last identity as it were, and it’s up to us to be aware there have been multiple lives before that!⁠ Restringing is normal. In that light I would suggest to replace ‘on original stringing’ with ‘on an original stringing‘ – it does do more justice to the many lives a necklace has had.

This article will continue with an article on how to spot alterations in ethnic jewellery, and an article on what to think of before you start restringing necklaces that are still on an original stringing – stay tuned!

—

More tips for collectors? Browse them all here!

Join the Jewellery List and receive new articles, jewellery news and more in your inbox!

—

References

[1] This practice was shared with me by mrs. Alix Normandeau.

Would you like to quote this article? Please do! 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].

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.

Draa Valley necklace

Draa Valley necklace

by | Objects

Amazigh Berber jewellery

Amber and coral necklace from the Draa Valley, Morocco

Published Jan 17, 2024

A coral and amber stunner in the signature arrangement of the Draa Valley, Morocco. In this article, I’m zooming in on its composition, its meaning and its many lives.

A glorious Draa Valley amber and coral necklace with colourful woollen tassels
Close-up of a spectacular Amazigh Berber necklace from the Draa Valley in Morocco, showing its abundance in coral, amber and trade beads

An Amazigh necklace from the Draa Valley

You’ll find this type of necklace presented as Berber or Amazigh necklace: while ‘Berber’ is the word almost everyone knows, ‘Amazigh’ is actually how its people prefer themselves referred to. I’ll go into the reasons behind that in another post: this article analyzes the meaning and history of this beautiful piece of jewellery.

This huge, gorgeous Berber necklace was worn in the Draa Valley, Morocco. As you see in the gallery above (click the image to enlarge it), it’s made of eight strands of large branch coral beads and a central arrangement of chunky amber beads flanked by shells.⁠

This necklace was worn by a married woman. As its individual components, notably the sizeable pieces of branch coral and amber, are quite expensive, the necklace was also a show of wealth. [1]

Draa Valley necklace: amulets and beads

Between the coral abundance is a treasure of other beads. Amazonite, agate, glass, shell and smaller amber beads are strung in with a variety of beads and pendants in low grade silver: there are coins, cones, cornerless cubes, bell-shaped beads and a few amulets.⁠ [2]

The amber holds several meanings: this is where you’ll find specific information about the hidden powers of amber in Berber jewellery. Amazonite beads were believed to be associated with fertility, because of its green colour: an association found with many green stones.

Ancient trade beads are a testimony to the long history of trade and commerce in the region. As are the polished brown and green agate beads, that were imported on a large scale from Idar Oberstein in Germany.

And it holds several low-grade silver beads, amulets and pendants. These are lovely in their variety, and are randomly strung in with the rest: this is where you’ll find the personal preference of the wearer reflected most closely, as these are the items that she would have selected herself.

She may have collected various beads and pendants over time. They may also come from other pieces of jewellery that had fallen apart – and that is another factor to consider when looking at these necklaces: they fell apart at some point during their lives.

Berber jewellery from the Draa Valley: its many lives

This piece is still in its original stringing. But what does that really mean? I think it’s important to consider that this is the last stringing with the purpose of wearing it within the culture itself.

‘Last’, because during its life, it would have been restrung multiple times anyway. Its threads would become worn after years of beads weighing them down. Eventually one of them would break, and then it would be restrung. That was also the perfect occasion to add some more beads and other pendants. So, with several actions of restringing, which ‘incarnation’ is the original one…? That’s why I think looking at its purpose is an important factor in determining whether stringing is ‘original’.

Another indicator of ‘original stringing’ is its closure, so let’s go into that next.
⁠

" Necklaces have several lives: they are restrung multiple times, each time with tiny differences to its arrangement and composition'

Draa Valley necklace details: its closure

What is even more remarkable about this Amazigh necklace is that it still has its original closure: the two large tassels of woolen cords. These are quite heavy themselves, and form a perfect counterweight to the weight of the beads.⁠

They are held together by a woolen band. Like a scrunchy in your hair, that is what keeps the two heavy tassels together. The idea behind the tassels is not to knot them, that would be uncomfortable to wear, but to simply tie them closely together.

There are other cultural reasons to avoid knots in general: you’ll find those here.

You may find similar necklaces outfitted with a simple knot-and-loop closure: that is a later alteration to make these necklaces more suited to the taste of collectors who’d want to wear them. And that brings me to their afterlife.

Draa Valley necklace: its afterlife

Necklaces like these, in their original setup, are becoming increasingly rare. Many of these have been broken up in the past to be sold, as its individual coral, amazonite and amber beads may fetch a handsome price.

You’ll also find modern arrangements reflecting the style of the Draa Valley, sometimes put together with antique elements and sometimes with entirely newly made beads.

Some of these are used in traditional dance performances (you don’t want your antique piece snapping apart on stage, after all) both in Morocco itself and abroad. As such, the design of this necklace is still communicating the cultural identity of its wearers, and I think that is a beautiful thing!

—

Explore the world of jewellery in the easy, online courses!

More posts on jewellery pieces in detail? Browse them all here!

Join the Jewellery List and receive new articles, jewellery news and more in your inbox!

—

References

[1] Berber Women of Morocco, Fondation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent 2014, p. 73.

[2] See the chapter Jewelry Art by Cynthia Becker in Berber Women of Morocco, Fondation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent 2014.

Would you like to quote this article? Please do! 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].

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.

What is ‘ethnic’ jewellery?

What is ‘ethnic’ jewellery?

by | Opinion

Meanings of ethnic jewellery

What is ‘ethnic’ jewellery?

Published Jan 12, 2024

It’s a popular term: ethnic jewellery. You’ll find it widely on the Internet, in fashion magazines and in books on jewellery. But what is ethnic jewellery, exactly? And how may we understand it without lumping pretty much all of the world under one global umbrella term? In this article, I’ll give you my personal take on what ethnic jewellery is.

Ethnic jewellery: jewellery of people

‘Ethnic’ comes from the Greek word ‘ethnos’, meaning ‘people’ in the sense of an ethnic group. [1] Ethnography and ethnology stem from the same root. Ethnic jewellery is the jewellery of a particular people or community.

Ethnic jewellery encompasses a vast array of adornments. All of these tell a unique story of the cultural, religious, and social fabric of the communities that create and wear it. So the way I see it, if you want to know what ethnic jewellery is, its meaning for the specific people that made these pieces and to whose culture they belong is central to that understanding.

Just to manage expectations: I’m not going into the discussion around the use of the term ‘ethnic’ itself here – I’ll do that in another article, as there is quite some consideration to be given to this term. But that article is not this one.

In this article, I’d like to focus on how we should understand ethnic jewellery. What is that? Actually, it is a lot of things bundled up in one term, so let’s go over those!

A silver and enamel fibula from the Tiznit region, Morocco
A beautiful gold and coral necklace from Volendam, the Netherlands

Ethnic jewellery: communities of origin

For its communities of origin, ethnic jewellery serves as a powerful symbol of identity and continuity. Each piece carries with it the collective memory of a people – their traditions, rituals, and historical milestones.

Sounds like a large claim, but is very true: jewellery is a powerful historic source, you just have to know how to read it.

That is also why it is so important to its community of origin. Wearing one’s own ethnic jewellery is a clear affirmation of identity: this is who we are.

That meaning itself is also getting increasingly watered down. The variety of styles and types within one community has dwindled significantly over the past 60 years or so. Many original pieces of jewellery are no longer known to the communities that once wore them, and that holds true all over the world.

An example is Dutch traditional jewellery: I am Dutch myself, but not from either region the jewellery you see above is from. Clicking on the images will enlarge them, so you can take in the details.

I can’t place the tiny differences in decoration of veil pins, necklace clasps and head adornment to the level of detail and origin that my grandmother would easily have identified. I still recognize it as the ethnic jewellery of my community, but not as accurately as previous generations.

Ethnic jewellery: its meaning in its cultural context

Reading ethnic jewellery is closely connected to its cultural context. In fact, that is essential: jewellery is created by people, for people, and if we want to understand ethnic jewellery, its cultural context is where to start.

Because ethnic jewellery is deeply intertwined with cultural practices, representing rites of passage, forming a woman’s financial assets, embodying her religious beliefs, and signaling her social status. The patterns, colours and materials used in jewellery may signify a person’s age, marital status, or even their role within the community.

And those may be very local communities: the language of silver ethnic jewellery may be understood in just one region only. An example are the engraved discs worn in the Bahariya Oasis, Egypt. You’ll see one of those above: click to enlarge the photo to see this piece in full. Their meaning is specific to this oasis, the pieces were never produced outside this place, and their significance remains somewhat of a mystery that I tried to solve here.

Three silver hair ornaments for children from Oman

Ethnic jewellery: its meaning in rites of passage

Ethnic jewellery also plays an active role in specific life events. There are jewellery pieces which are created for these moments, such as weddings, coming-of-age ceremonies, or even funerals. Just think of the elaborate mourning jewellery of the 18th and 19th century Western world.

More on wedding jewellery is explained in these posts:

The meskia – a wedding jewel from the Maghreb

These adornments accompany their wearers through significant transitions. In that sense, they serve as tangible markers of the individual’s journey within the community. An example are the three silver hair ornaments shown above (click to enlarge them): these were worn by children in Oman. Their wear is specified further for boys, who would wear the hand-shaped ornaments, and girls, who would wear the circular ornament.

Jewellery pieces like these often operate in sync with dress, hairstyle and body aesthetic like tattoos: here again, jewellery always needs to be seen in its context.

An example is how in many cultures there is a great difference between dress and adornment of an unmarried girl and that of a married woman. These differences are presented in more detail in these articles:

Omani hair ornaments – between girl and woman

The Palestinian wuqaya – between girl and woman

A married woman will sport a different hairstyle and wear much more jewellery. That is also because of her dowry gifts, and that brings me to another aspect of ethnic jewellery: its value.

A Ouled Nail Bedouin woman and silver bracelets.
A faceveil from Palestinian/Egyptian Bedouin, showing coins.

Ethnic jewellery: its value and financial meaning

The use of jewellery as a way to store capital goes back to the ancient civilizations. It takes effort for us, living in this day and age, to imagine anything other than banks, credit cards, and paper currency as main carriers of financial value (ok, and there’s designer handbags, but the jury is still out on their long term value…!).

But for several millennia, gold and silver jewellery was the perfect way to safeguard one’s wealth: it’s portable and can be melted down when needed. Serving as capital and asset is another important capacity of ethnic jewellery.

The way this takes material form is different for each culture, tribe and region. It can be adding coins to dress and adornment, such as in the example of the face veil above, or in wearing heavy and large pieces of jewellery. Those are just two examples, but you get the idea!

This financial aspect of jewellery is presented in these articles:

The Spanish pillar dollar – a forgotten coin

Ethnic jewellery: what is it?

As you see, there is no single definition of what ethnic jewellery means: this entire blog and all courses are dedicated to jewellery as material culture of people, and it’s still only scratching the surface.

Ethnic jewellery is many things within its own cultural context. Most of all, it is jewellery that is specific to a culture, region, tribe or other form of society and which distinguishes them from others. It is a visual form of cultural identity, like dress and costume. As such, it is highly specific, instead of a general container term to lump exotic-looking accessories into.

This post will be continued with other thoughts on ethnic jewellery (such as Can I wear ethnic jewellery?) and alternative terms we may employ – stay tuned!

—

More posts on my jewellery musings? Browse them all here!

Join the Jewellery List and receive new articles, jewellery news and more in your inbox!

More historical background on jewellery from the Middle East and North Africa? It’s all in the courses: a world of jewellery detail awaits!

—

References

[1] See https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ethnos

Would you like to quote this article? Please do! 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.

Parfums d’Orient: book

Parfums d’Orient: book

by | Reviews

Institut du Monde Arabe

Parfums d’Orient: the catalogue

Published on Jan 8, 2024

The wonderful exhibition Parfums d’Orient, in the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, came with its very own publication. The book, too, is called Parfums d’Orient, and it is as beautiful as the exhibition itself.

Ancient stone incense burner from the Arab Peninsula

Parfums d’Orient: the catalogue

The book presents 26 essays by renowned authors. The essays are grouped into four main parts: natural resources for perfumes, the art of perfuming oneself, fragrance and the invisible world, and fragrance in and around the house. As such, the catalogue follows the design of the exhibition and paints a complete picture of the world of fragrance.

The book starts out with an introduction of fragrance. How does it affect our mood? Why is it important to have around us? And how does our sense of smell actually work? A series of essays sets the scene to understand the role of fragrance in our personal lives, and the cultural interconnectivity that perfumes from the Middle East represent.

Parfums d’Orient: the bounty of nature

The first essays are devoted to ingredients and perfume history. I enjoyed the beautifully illustrated essays on Damascene rose, oud, ambergris and musk. The historical background explains how scented paths crossed, resulting in the familiar fragrances of today, while the essay on the perfumer’s art sheds light on both the past and the future of perfuming.

Parfums d’Orient: perfuming oneself

The second part explores the realm of science and history. Here, we learn of medieval manuscripts with perfume recipes, the trade in incense and the beautifully designed perfume flasks. An exploration into the bath house reveals the use of fragrance in relation to health and well-being.

I really liked the personal point of view on perfuming in the essay on perfume and art: imagine, indeed, losing your sense of smell as a result of the pandemic. Suddenly, the world becomes one-dimensional and plain; fragrance is of greater importance than we might think.

Parfums d’Orient: fragrance and the invisible world

Now this is one of my favourite angles, and if you have taken my course Scents of the Middle East, you’ll have seen why! Fragrance itself is like an invisible power that may affect our happiness and sense of wellbeing. This part of the catalogue addresses that supernatural capacity of scent throughout the ages.

Ancient Egypt, early Christianity and Judaism as well as Islam have their own spiritual connotations with fragrance, and these are explored in separate essays. The special essay on fumigations and magic is short, but fascinating!

Parfums d’Orient: perfume in and around the house

And this is where the jewellery is….! Scented paste and fragrant beads are shown in relation to the intimacy of marriage, adding yet another layer to the meanings perfume may carry. That extends to perfuming one’s guests and spicing dishes, both of which are discussed, too.

Parfums d’Orient: art, research, history, science

The catalogue is beautifully illustrated, showing you everything from ancient artefacts to modern art, from sweeping landscape views to medieval manuscripts. What I really loved about this book is that it seamlessly integrates the historical and cultural background of fragrance with art and lived experiences. As such, it really conveys the importance of the senses for our everyday existence. Fragrance is part and parcel of every aspect of life, and the exhibition catalogue absolutely brings that point across.

Parfums d’Orient. By Hanna Boghanim and Agnes Carayon (eds) (2023). 223 pages, full-colour, in French. Published by Institut du Monde Arabe/Skira.

Available with the publisher and in the museum shop of the Institut du Monde Arabe.

I purchased the book in the museum shop of the Institut du Monde Arabe upon my visit of the exhibition.

—

Explore the world of fragrance in the course Scents of the Middle East!

More posts on exhibitions and museums? Browse them all here!

Join the Jewellery List and receive new articles, jewellery news and more in your inbox!

—

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.

Ethnic jewels: silver content

Ethnic jewels: silver content

by | Tips for collectors

silver grades in tribal jewellery

Ethnic jewellery: its silver content

Published Jan 07, 2024

What silver is ethnic jewellery from the Middle East and North Africa typically made of? Apart from hallmarks, you’ll find a variety of labels used in descriptions such as ‘German silver’, ‘nickel silver’, ‘maillechort’ and ‘coin silver’: what are these? Let’s scrutinize some of the common descriptions of the silver content in jewellery. The more you know, right…?

Silver grades in traditional jewellery from the Middle East & North Africa

Silver in traditional Middle Eastern jewellery is not always sterling silver. That has two reasons.

First, the availability of silver was not always guaranteed. Silver often had to be imported, and silver jewellery could also be made from coins (we’ll get into that below).

And second, before hallmarking systems were implemented in the 19th century, the actual amount of silver could vary with the means of the client. Have more to spend? Then you could afford high grade silver. Still want the looks, but strapped for cash? That is where lower grade silver or even silver imitations come in handy.

Is ‘bedouin silver’, ‘tribal silver’ or ‘ethnic silver’ good silver?

This fluctuation in silver content has rubbed off on our understanding of traditional jewellery. Words like ‘tribal silver’ or ‘bedouin silver’ are often used to indicate uncertain silver content, but that does not do these pieces justice.

Traditional silver jewellery is not automatically always inferior to sterling: there is a lot of ethnic jewellery out there in really good silver!

If you’d like to know with certainty whether your traditional Middle Eastern jewellery is made of silver, and if so which grade, you will have to test it, or bring it to a jeweler to test it for you.

The silver content may vary indeed, and if a piece has not been hallmarked, testing is the only way to be sure. This also comes in handy with cleaning: read why this is essential knowledge to avoid damage here.

Silver grades in traditional jewellery: reading descriptions

In some descriptions online that advertise ethnic jewellery you’ll find terms like ‘German silver’, ‘coin silver’ ‘maillechort’ and ‘nickel silver’: how ‘silvery’ are these?

Not silver: German silver, new silver, nickel silver, maillechort, alpaca

What does German silver mean? German silver is a versatile metal alloy that has found its place in many industries and applications. Despite its name, German ‘silver’ does not actually contain any silver. It was developed in the 19th century in Germany (hence the name) as a cost-effective alternative to sterling silver, providing a similar silvery appearance, but without the hefty price tag.

German silver is typically composed of copper, zinc, and nickel. [1] The exact composition can vary, and additional elements such as manganese or iron can be included for specific properties. The inclusion of nickel makes it resistant to corrosion, but also gives it that silver-like color. It looks a lot like sterling silver! You’ll find it used for tableware and related accessories, but also for jewellery.  

German silver, nickel silver, alpaca, new silver and maillechort are basically the same thing. None of these are actual silver.

Actual silver: coin silver

Coin silver, on the other hand, is actual silver. So what is coin silver? This is a historical silver alloy that played a significant role in the production of coins, which is where it gets its name from.

But unlike sterling silver, which has a minimum silver content of 92.5%, coin silver typically has a lower silver content. Now this is something to be aware of: the silver content of coin silver varies per issuing national mint. This, too, was not standardized until the mid-19th century. So, US coins would typically have around 90% silver, but other coinage contains 75% or even 64% silver.

The exception here is of course the Austrian Maria Theresia Thaler. [2] This was the first coin to have been produced with a guaranteed silver content of 92.5%: these coins were made of sterling silver. They became much sought-after coins, both to string into necklaces or add to dress and veils, but definitely also as material to make silver jewellery from.

Silver content of jewellery from the Middle East & North Africa: 3 points

Returning to the main question: is silver jewellery from North Africa & the Middle East made of good silver…? That varies, as this article has shown, but there is no reason to assume it is always low-grade silver. Here are the three main points to keep in mind:

1. Definitely silver There are two ways of being sure your piece of jewellery is of actual silver: official hallmarks and testing. This will tell you the percentage of silver in the alloy: .600 is 60%, .925 is 92.5% (sterling), and so on.

2. May have a significant silver content When ‘coin silver’ is used in a description, it indicates that the piece does contain silver, but its silver content may vary, especially for older pieces. Testing may provide more detailed insights.

3. Not silver: When you read terms like nickel silver, German silver, new silver, alpaca or maillechort in a description, you can be sure the item is not made of silver.

If you are not sure, ask the seller of the item. I have never met a seller who wasn’t happy to answer to the best of their knowledge! And besides, the cultural and historical value of a piece of traditional jewellery is not just defined by its silver content, but may even be in the absence of precious materials: see my personal outlook on the value of jewellery here.

The main thing is to be aware of the fact that the silver content in traditional jewellery may vary, and to read a description carefully to get the best possible idea of what your next purchase is made of!

—

More posts on jewellery, amulets and magic? Browse them all here!

Join the Jewellery List and receive new articles, jewellery news and more in your inbox!

More background on amulets in jewellery from the Middle East and North Africa? Check out the course on Amulets & Charms!

—

References

[1] See more details in the Encyclopedia Brittanica here.

[2] See this article on Maria Theresia Thaler in Aramco World for more background!

 

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.