A TUNISIAN POLYCHROME ENAMELLED TRIANGULAR SILVER PENDANT WITH HAMSA
Djerba or Sousse, Tunisia, North Africa, 19th century

Of triangular shape, the central pendant built as an amulet case made of joined silver sheets, the front and back enhanced with champlevé enamels in ochre yellow, cobalt blue and copper green, and high-collet settings, some with polychrome beads and two empty, the central triangular field presenting a rosette and foliage on one side, and a stylised hamsa (Fatima's hand, an Islamic talismanic symbol) on the other, encased within concentric beaded bands, with a blue crescent at the top, and a stylised openwork filigree sphere beneath the hanging hoop, the bottom enhanced with nine chainlets caparisoned with coral beads and stylised hamsa charms, boosting the talismanic power of this amulet.

21cm long (including the chainlets)

72gr.

An analogous enamelled triangular pendant, attributed to the 19th century, is published in Valérie Gonzalez, Émaux d'Al-Andalus et du Maghreb, 1994, p. 207, fig. 174.