A beaded necklace with silver pendants

INDIA, 20TH CENTURY

Details

A beaded necklace with silver pendants
India, 20th century
The orange stone beads interspersed with various spacers, with five silver pendants in the form of bells and two silver coins, with a copper coin clasp
25¾ in. (65.4 cm.) long

Provenance

Doris Wiener Gallery, New York, 1960s

Lot Essay

The coin that is punched through to form the clasp depicts on one side the head of George VI (1895-1956), and reads "GEORGE VI - KING - [of England] EMPEROR [of India]", and the other side reads "ONE QUARTER/A-A/INDIA/1939." According to Oppi Untracht, the British government in India actually encouraged the use of their coins in jewelry - the wearer was a walking billboard for the state government.

More from The Doris Wiener Collection

View All