.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
The manga malai, or “mango garland”, is a characteristic form of South Indian jewellery, particularly associated with Tamil Nadu. The necklace takes its name from the repeated mango-shaped elements from which it is composed. The mango is an important motif in South Indian visual culture and has long been associated with fertility, love and the wish-fulfilling tree. The manga malai has a long history, with related forms represented in South Indian sculpture and bronzes dating to the Chola period and earlier. Traditionally worn on important ceremonial occasions, including weddings, such necklaces also formed part of the jewellery worn by Bharatanatyam dancers.
The present necklace is distinguished by its densely gem-set mango plaques, combining cabochon rubies with diamonds and emeralds, and by its elaborate central padakkam. The use of individually articulated mango-shaped elements on a flexible gold-wire construction allows the necklace to follow the contours of the wearer while retaining the characteristic rhythm of the manga malai form. The combination of richly coloured gemstones and elaborate goldwork is particularly characteristic of South Indian jewellery of the nineteenth century.
Comparable 19th-century examples include a diamond, ruby and emerald-set gold manga malai from Tamil Nadu sold at Sotheby’s, London, 8 October 2014, lot 302, and a closely related example sold at Sotheby’s, London, 23 October 2019, lot 242. An early nineteenth-century example, dated 1800–1858, is preserved in the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha (JE1282003), while a related early 20th-century example is held by the National Museum, New Delhi (90.752). A further late 19th/early 20th-century example is in the Indian Heritage Centre, Singapore (2016-00363). These examples demonstrate the continuing popularity of the mango-garland form while illustrating variations in the arrangement of the plaques, gem-setting, method of articulation and design of the central pendant.
The present necklace is distinguished by its densely gem-set mango plaques, combining cabochon rubies with diamonds and emeralds, and by its elaborate central padakkam. The use of individually articulated mango-shaped elements on a flexible gold-wire construction allows the necklace to follow the contours of the wearer while retaining the characteristic rhythm of the manga malai form. The combination of richly coloured gemstones and elaborate goldwork is particularly characteristic of South Indian jewellery of the nineteenth century.
Comparable 19th-century examples include a diamond, ruby and emerald-set gold manga malai from Tamil Nadu sold at Sotheby’s, London, 8 October 2014, lot 302, and a closely related example sold at Sotheby’s, London, 23 October 2019, lot 242. An early nineteenth-century example, dated 1800–1858, is preserved in the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha (JE1282003), while a related early 20th-century example is held by the National Museum, New Delhi (90.752). A further late 19th/early 20th-century example is in the Indian Heritage Centre, Singapore (2016-00363). These examples demonstrate the continuing popularity of the mango-garland form while illustrating variations in the arrangement of the plaques, gem-setting, method of articulation and design of the central pendant.