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Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul
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Folding crown, 1st century A.D.
Afghanistan, Tillya Tepe, tomb VI
Gold and altered turquoise; 17 3/4 x 5 1/8 in. (45 x 13 cm)
National Museum of Afghanistan, Kabul, 04.40.50
Photo: © Thierry Ollivier / Musée Guimet
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Five tree-like shapes and a diadem-like base provide the structure of this extraordinary crown, which is collapsible and easily transported. Flowers, discs, and two tiny birds fill the trees. The roundels that decorate the interiors of the flowers are inlaid with pieces of turquoise that have been altered to show a red tinge. A wonderful example of ancient nomadic design, this type of crown with tree and bird motifs has many parallels in the vast nomadic world of the steppes, extending from Ukraine to Kazakhstan. The most dramatic parallels, however, are with crowns found much later in fifth- and sixth-century-A.D. Korean tombs of the Baekje and Silla kingdoms. The similarities between the first-century crowns found in Afghanistan and those produced later in Korea provides a stunning testimony to the geographic breadth of artistic styles and forms that traversed the Silk Road, and to the longevity of many of these traditions.
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