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Nose Ring

20th century (made)
Place of origin

A large nose ring called a sheesha nath in gold with glass ornaments. A tapering facetted hollow gold arc slots into a section of coiled gold wire, the central portion of which is wrapped in a spiral of fine gold wire, which extends round the back of a large floral motif and onto which are threaded blue and a dark red glass beads and gold beads with gold granulated spacers in between. It further connects with a cone-shaped sheet of stamped gold bisected by a gold granulated disc and a diamond-shaped gold setting for a green glass inset. This completes the circle of the ringout of which curves the facetted gold arc. The floral motif is decorated with red glass insets on the petals and a green glass inset in the cetnre. The tips of the petals have small granulated motifs which also are garlanded with tiny hollow gold rings threaded onto wire with tiny blue beads at the apex of each petal. The reverse of this motif has three hoops through which is threaded the gold wire of the nose ring. The central hoop has an additional gold ring onto which a chain or thread could be attached and secured in the wearer's hair.

Object details

Category
Object type
Materials and techniques
gold with glass ornaments
Brief description
Nose ring from the desert regions of Sindh, Pakistan. Gold and glass
Physical description
A large nose ring called a sheesha nath in gold with glass ornaments. A tapering facetted hollow gold arc slots into a section of coiled gold wire, the central portion of which is wrapped in a spiral of fine gold wire, which extends round the back of a large floral motif and onto which are threaded blue and a dark red glass beads and gold beads with gold granulated spacers in between. It further connects with a cone-shaped sheet of stamped gold bisected by a gold granulated disc and a diamond-shaped gold setting for a green glass inset. This completes the circle of the ringout of which curves the facetted gold arc. The floral motif is decorated with red glass insets on the petals and a green glass inset in the cetnre. The tips of the petals have small granulated motifs which also are garlanded with tiny hollow gold rings threaded onto wire with tiny blue beads at the apex of each petal. The reverse of this motif has three hoops through which is threaded the gold wire of the nose ring. The central hoop has an additional gold ring onto which a chain or thread could be attached and secured in the wearer's hair.
Dimensions
  • Weight: 23.5g
  • Widest part of the ring diameter: 7.5cm
  • Height: 6cm
Credit line
Given by Dr W. Ganguly
Object history
This nose ring is part of the large donation of Indian folk jewellery from Dr Waltraud Ganguly which was collected over the last few decades before her death in 2015 from dealers in both India and Europe, in parallel with extensive fieldwork she carried out in the Indian Sub-Continent. Dr. Ganguly purchased this ring from Amrapali, Jaipur in March 2010
Historical context
Nose rings of this bold type with brightly coloured glass belong to then mainly Muslim desert dwellers of the Thar desrt area around Barmer, Rajasthan, and the adjacent regions in Sindh, Pakistan and Gujarat.
Bibliographic references
  • Ganguly, W., Nose Rings of India , Delhi, 2015 p. 84, illus. p.85
  • Indian folk jewellery : designs and techniques / Waltraud Ganguly. Number: 9789350502129, 9350502127 p.47
Collection
Accession number
IS.255-2019

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Record createdMay 19, 2015
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