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Lost wax from Cental Asia

This heavy bracelet was bought in Saudi Arabia in the 1980s but looks like an Uzbek (Karalkapak?) piece to me. Any opinion on this would be very welcome.
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Comments

  • I can't help with the ID but I absolutely LOVE it.  Congratulations Betty!!  What is your photo setup?  I love the soft velvety glow on this one.

  • Yes, I was drooling over this last night and glad to see it again today ;) It is so lovely and nicely photoed.

  • Thank you Lynn and Brooke. It is a very unusual piece and full of character. I too, like the softened edges with are a result of lost wax production and wear.

    Unfortunately it falls off my arm when I move, so ultimately I might let it go (I guess I am not a true collector since wearability is such an important criterion for me :-)). 

    Yes, the picture turned out quite nicely, but I am afraid that is pure coincidence. I usually use a home made black box and the get the best result when taking pics on a sunny morning but away from direct sunshine.2506069212?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024

  • Are the sides and top of your box transparent to let light in, or is it all black and you are photographing with the single light source (indirect sun) streaming in?

    There are a few things I do with bracelets that are too large, as most of them are too large for me.  1) I wear them over sleeves and sometimes roll up the cuffs of the sleeves to keep them on. 2) I push them up hard on my bare forearm so that they clasp the flesh.  3)  I knot embroidery floss around the knobs on the ends so that if they do fall, they can't fall off.

  • I would also love to hear about your boxing techniques. I have been trying to build one forever and maybe by the time I get to it I will have VERY solid ideas how to do so. 

  • I dismantled an ordinary box so that I only have the bottom and two of the sides left (I leave the flaps on so that I can use them to regulate the light a bit). Then I cover these three areas with black cardboard.

    That's why take photos away from the sun. However that only works when it is a bright and sunny day. You work with a light box, don't you? I really love the result, your pix are super. Might try this as well sometime, but so far have shied away from the investment.

    Good ideas for wearing large bracelets - thank you! I also push some up as far as possible (though sometimes that gets a bit uncomfortable) or wear them over sleeves. But I have never tried the embroidery floss method. 

  • 2506035278?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024

    Hi Betty, I think this is a beautiful, simple Karakalpak bracelet. I'll attach a picture of a similar bracelet from David and Sue Richardson's book Qaraqalpaqs of the Aral Delta. The small stamped circles are commonly used in Karakalpak pieces to decorate the surface of the silver. Congratulations. But why Saudi Arabia .... maybe as a result of a pilgrimage?

  • Thank you Betty, I will experiment with your method.  I do use a very inexpensive 16"x16" light box, but I understand you can also make them from cardboard boxes and translucent wrapping tissue.  The most important part is the lights, they need to be super bright and the right color like daylight.  I use these, and I still get the best results when I have the box in ambient indirect daylight as well.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002SOBPH8?psc=1&redirect=true...

  • Thank you very much for the reference, Thelma. Very good to have. I also wish I knew how it travelled to Saudi Arabia. Unfortunately it cannot tell its story...

    I also found a very nice decription on the Richardson's website http://www.karakalpak.com/jewellery.html

    All in all there is not much information avaiblable on this kind of bilezik... or at least I haven't found much yet.

    Again many thanks.

  • Thank you Lynn for the tips and the link. I might try this one day. I also thought about making a light box myself, but then the problem is where to put it when you not using it. The good thing is that it makes you independent of the weather and time of day :-)

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