Not on display

Ear Ornament

ca. 1885 (made)
Place of origin
Madras (made)

Ear ornament (koppu) worn at the top of the ear. Gold with imitation pearls depending from the lower portion.

Object details

Categories
Jewellery
Metalwork
Object type
Ear ornament
Materials and techniques
Gold with cluster of pearl simulants., probably essence d'orient over a lac core.
Gold
Imitation Pearl
Brief description
Ear ornament (koppu), gold with a cluster of pearl simulants, Southern India, c.1885.
Physical description
Ear ornament (koppu) worn at the top of the ear. Gold with imitation pearls depending from the lower portion.
Dimensions
  • Length: 5cm
  • Including pendants width: 2cm
  • Metal only, excluding pendants diameter: 1.1cm
Credit line
Purchased from the Colonial and Indian Exhibition held in London in 1886
Object history
Purchased from the Colonial and Indian Exhibition, 1886; possibly bought in India for the exhibition by Caper Purdon Clarke in 1885. Placed in the Jewellery Room, Upper Galleries in the museum.

This acquisition information reflects that found in the Museum records (Asia Department registers and/or Central Inventory) as part of a 2023 provenance research project.
Production
Southern India, recorded as from 'Madras', which may however refer to the Madras Presidency rather than the city (now Chennai). Ganguly observes that koppu with pendant pearls were 'fairly common in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh'.
Bibliographic references
  • . Ganguly, Waltraud, Earring,Ornamental Identity and Beauty in India, B.R.Publishing Corporation, Delhi, 2007, p.235
  • Indian Jewellery: The V&A Collection London: V&A Publishing, 2008 Number: ISBN 9781851774838 p. 20, pl. 1.12
Collection
South & South East Asia Collection
Accession number
IS.161-1886

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Record createdDecember 8, 2005
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O119506/ear-ornament/
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