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Levant necklace - Please ID

Posted by Lynn Ardent on May 16, 2015 at 11:12pm

I would love help identifying this necklace. It features silver coins, rings, stylized hand shapes, teardrops, and a small buckle on a copper torc and chain. The copper parts appear more recent than the silver parts -- I don't know if this piece was restored, or completely rearranged. Several elements of this necklace appear in Palestinian jewelry, the teardrop shapes and the stylized hands with glass beads. (photos in the comments) The coins are from the mid-1800s. Any ideas? Is this a traditional arrangement, or a fantasy rearrangement?

Comments

Peter Hoesli May 17, 2015 at 3:25pm

Dear Lynn; This is a very interesting piece. I believe that the center part including the dangles are part of the costume closure while the chain and remaining coins, dangles, etc. have been added to it. It looks Ottoman to me. With kind regards. Peter
Lynn Ardent May 18, 2015 at 4:25pm

Dear Peter, thank you for your comment. That may well be the case. I have seen these little clasps with long dangling adornments in collections from Syria and Palestine. The six dangles immediately above the buckle are clearly part of a set with the ones attached directly to the buckle, and so I wonder very much how this was originally configured.
Peter Hoesli May 18, 2015 at 5:10pm

Dear Lynn; I believe that the center piece is a coat closure from Palestine. The decoration on the buckle is the same as featured on some of my Palestinian pieces. I herewith attach a photo of my coat closure - I do not know the correct word for this piece. They are sewn onto the jackets and used as a closing mechanism. This piece is somehow not as refined as yours but I believe that the purpose of both of them are the same. With kind regards. Peter
Lynn Ardent August 2, 2020 at 6:07pm

I eventually found out exactly what this was. The core buckle is a coat closure as Peter suggested, or a pectoral ornament, from the Djebel Druze of Syria. The little girl on the right is wearing the same model: