Head Ornament
first half 19th century (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This Indian hair ornament is made of coiling elements of gold set with rubies, emeralds and diamonds, and has a central section of gold set with rubies and emeralds, from which hang nine strings of seed pearls, each ending with a small pendant in the form of a floret set with a single diamond and two rubies. It was bought by the Indian Museum in 1855, almost certainly from an exhibition which may have been the Paris Exposition Universelle of that year, and was presumably made not long before. It was transferred to the South Kensington Museum, later renamed the Victoria and Albert Museum, in 1879. The form is extremely unusual, but was identified as the traditional form called "jhapta", or "jhumka" when reproduced in a book by Zulekha Haque, Gahana. Jewellery of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Small & Cottage Industries Corporation, Dhaka, 1984, fig. 65 and p. 48).
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Gold set with diamonds, emeralds and pearls |
| Brief description | spiral bands; Jewellery, gold pearls rubies diam's emer's,Bengal |
| Physical description | The middle pendant ('sinthi') is styled in a floral pattern of gold and stone setting with diamonds, emeralds and rubies. Nine strings of seed pearls and rubies hang from the centre piece and each string is terminated with a smaller butterfly shaped pendant of gold and stone setting with diamond, rubies and seed pearl drops. The two side bands are linked with the middle pendant by two strings of seed pearls and rubies. The gold side bands are spiral shaped but each terminating in a serpent's head and set with diamonds, emeralds, pearls and rubies and each has a floral piece in gold setting. The side bands are designed to wrap round locks of hair and to hang on each side of face close to the ear. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | Acquired in 1855, probably from the Exposition Universelle, Paris |
| Summary | This Indian hair ornament is made of coiling elements of gold set with rubies, emeralds and diamonds, and has a central section of gold set with rubies and emeralds, from which hang nine strings of seed pearls, each ending with a small pendant in the form of a floret set with a single diamond and two rubies. It was bought by the Indian Museum in 1855, almost certainly from an exhibition which may have been the Paris Exposition Universelle of that year, and was presumably made not long before. It was transferred to the South Kensington Museum, later renamed the Victoria and Albert Museum, in 1879. The form is extremely unusual, but was identified as the traditional form called "jhapta", or "jhumka" when reproduced in a book by Zulekha Haque, Gahana. Jewellery of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Small & Cottage Industries Corporation, Dhaka, 1984, fig. 65 and p. 48). |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 03209(IS) |
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| Record created | August 10, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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