A SELECTION OF TURKMEN CEREMONIAL JEWELS AND ACCESSORIES SET WITH CARNELIAN AND GLASS
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE BRITISH COLLECTION
Turkmenistan, Central Asia, 20th century

Comprising a domed, umbrella-shaped wedding headdress parcel-gilt silver finial (asyk or tumar), set with paste at the top, and fitted with decorative silver chains and bells; a large pectoral plaque of gilt and silvered sheet, set with central red and blue glass and turquoise-coloured pastes; a smaller pendant in the shape of a palmette set with a table-cut carnelian; and a pair of modern hoop earrings with pressed metal plaques, each set with a red glass stone, these items reflecting the distinctive silversmithing, filigree, and decorative traditions of Turkmen women’s jewellery from the late 19th century onwards, with elements of traditional attire and wedding costume from the region.

The headdress finial 16cm x 7.5cm

The pectoral plaque 12cm diameter

The pendant 7.5cm x 5.5cm

The earrings 8.5cm diameter

Overall weight 318gr.

Provenance: purchased by the present vendor's family when stationed at the Foreign Office in Tehran, Iran, from 1970 until 1972, during a trip to Samarkand.