Cordiform Ornaments

Turkmen Jewelry from the Collection of Marshall and Marilyn R. Wolf

October 9, 2012–February 24, 2013

Turkmen women wore impressively large cordiform, or heart-shaped, ornaments as functional dorsal jewelry, decorating the upper back when attached to braids; and as pectoral jewelry, probably originally attached to a cylindrical amulet holder. Braids also were adorned with long plait ornaments. Similarly, temple ornaments were suspended from women’s caps or the crowns of their heads. Most of these dangling ornaments had chains with bells that jingled when the wearer moved, an aspect of Turkmen life that caught the attention of European travelers. Amulet holders, made singly or in pairs, consisted of horizontal cylinders or rectangles that, when opened, could hold prayers or Qur'anic verses written on paper.

Related Artworks

1-9 of 15 results

Temple Pendant
Date: late 19th–early 20th century
Accession Number: 2007.497.2a
Temple Pendant
Date: late 19th–early 20th century
Accession Number: 2007.497.2b
Short Temple Pendant
Date: mid- to late 19th century
Accession Number: L.2006.39.148a
Short Temple Pendant
Date: mid- to late 19th century
Accession Number: L.2006.39.148b
Triple Cordiform Ornament
Date: mid- to late 19th century
Accession Number: 2014.714.1
Floral Pectoral Ornament
Date: late 19th–early 20th century
Accession Number: L.2006.39.127a
Floral Pectoral Ornament
Date: late 19th–early 20th century
Accession Number: L.2006.39.127b
Dorsal Plait Ornament
Date: late 19th–early 20th century
Accession Number: L.2006.39.154a
Dorsal plate ornament
Date: late 19th–early 20th century
Accession Number: L.2006.39.154b

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