In one swift move, Tiffany & Co. has transformed from the Queen of Alexandre Arnault’s chessboard to just another Pawn in the LVMH war chest. Could Tiffany’s latest partnership announcement signal the death of creativity within this illustrious jewelry firm?
Left: the Tiffany glasses in the quintessential Tiffany blue box. Right: Pharrell Williams sporting his pair of replica sunglasses at a Kenzo fashion show, January 2022.
The Glasses
This weekend Tiffany’s announced their “engagement” to celebrity Pharrell Williams. However, instead of proposing with their iconic six-prong ring, Tiffany’s christened their partnership with diamond-studded spectacles. Hand-crafted in 18-karat yellow gold and set with over 25 carats of diamonds and two emeralds, these sunglasses turned heads, but they weren’t all in Tiffany’s direction.
A Sotheby’s specialist holds the Astaneh-Ye Ferdaws emerald spectacles and the Halqeh-Ye Nur diamond spectacles, October 2021. Image via Sotheby’s.
Those who weren’t fixated on Tiffany’s announcement were seeing double while reviewing a widely publicized Sotheby’s auction held in October of 2021, particularly Lot No. 213. Romantically named, The Astaneh-Ye Ferdaws (gates of paradise), these spectacles incarnate the Islamic association with the color green with that of paradise, salvation and eternity. Adding to their poetic beauty, the emerald lenses are purported to have belonged to Shah Jahan, the 17th-century Indian ruler who commissioned the Taj Mahal for his beloved late wife, Mumtaz Mahal. According to Professor Ebba Koch of the Art Institute of Vienna, the lenses possibly served the Shah in healing his extreme mental state of mourning over the loss of his wife, providing him with a glimpse of his future eternal paradisiacal life.
The Tiffany glasses.
The Controversy
Tiffany’s branded their version of the glasses as, “custom-designed,” but their true origin is indisputable. Adding insult to injury, at the time of this writing both Tiffany’s and Williams have neglected to publicly acknowledge, or educate, their 26+ million (combined) followers on the design’s source, and cultural significance. While the creator of the original spectacles is unknown and certainly no longer earthbound, it becomes our responsibility to determine if this concept is appropriate. Is it ethical to produce a near one-for-one copy of a historical artifact in pursuit of furthering a corporate agenda? Particularly an artifact rooted in spirituality and possibly a historical figure’s grief?
Lot 213, The Astaneh-Ye Ferdaws (gates of paradise) spectacles. Image via Sotheby’s.
A Missed Opportunity
There could’ve been a better approach to this project. Why didn’t Tiffany’s, a company which thrives off of Americana and named partnerships take this opportunity to collaborate with another American icon like Ray-Ban? It seems like the perfect chance to model a pair of sunglasses off something that might be more synonymous with American celebrity and luxuries such as the Aviators or Wayfarers.
From Queen to Pawn
I think the answer to my aforementioned question lies in plain sight. The now infamous Tiffany spectacles were used to announce a partnership with Pharrell Williams, but where did this announcement take place? Not in New York, Tiffany’s hometown and epicenter for the past 185 years. But in Paris, home to the LVMH empire; and specifically at a Kenzo (another house within the LVMH holdings) fashion show where all eyes were on Creative Director Nigo’s debut collection.
Vice President of Tiffany’s, Alexandre Arnault with Pharrell Williams at a Rimowa event in L.A.
And just like that, Tiffany & Co., an American design institution for nearly 200 years, moves from Queen of the jewelry industry, to pawn of the conglomerate LVMH – pushed around the board to further a self-serving agenda designed to build and elevate its holdings’ reputations.
Is The Queen Dead?
We’ve (recently) been here before with Tiffany & Co. but it now appears to be a trend, and I have a feeling that our closely-knit industry will become tired of this continued game of corporate copycat. While I doubt the Tiffany name will ever cease to exist as a result of these actions, I can’t help but wonder something, “will creativity ever return to 610 5th Avenue?”
I certainly hope so. I have to say, it’s sad to see a company that was once synonymous with a unique expression and forward-thinking design engaged in the lowest form of creative production. The Queen may not be dead yet, but she’s certainly on life support.
Editorial written by Future Heirloom correspondent Nicholas Hyatt, excerpted from original publication on Hyatt’s website, Ping Pong Ring. Images provided by Nicholas Hyatt. Edited and formatted by Future Heirloom Editor Jackie Andrews.
Welcome to Day 2 of NYC Jewelry Week! Here on Future Heirloom, we’re celebrating by bringing you special behind-the-scenes content on some of our favorite programs, events, and exhibitions every day this week. Check in each day for a new feature on the happenings at NYC Jewelry Week.
Today we’re revisiting a special feature on the NYC Jewelry Week 21 exhibition, News From Central Asia, curated by Aida Sulova, on view at The Jewelry Library November 15-21, 2021. The works in the exhibition reflect currents in Politics, the Environment, and Culture of the region. Read about the making of the exhibition and Aida’s perspective on the curatorial process below.
Above: Tiaras by Jol Jol, a young Kazakh jewelry brand whose work is based on roads, repeat the shape of seven rivers in Kazakhstan.
News From Central Asia exhibition brings together Central Asian artists, makers, and designers whose inspirational works reflect political protests, climate change, collective memory restoration, jewelry as reminders of historical events, transformation caused by modernization. For New York City Jewelry Week 2021, curator Aida Sulova asked Central Asian artists and designers to share the news from their home country in the form of a wearable object – a jewelry piece.
For many artists in Central Asia making art is the only way to respond and talk about the events taking place today. Although the concept of this exhibition has a geographical representation, the themes of the news are relevant to what we are witnessing in the world. Examples include “Kinematics of Protests,” “Perestroika,” “Wearable Memory Card,” “Women of Kashgar,” “Cotton as a Curse,” says curator Sulova. Central Asia is a region which stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to China and Mongolia in the east. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan are former Soviet Republics that comprise Central Asia today. Since its Independence gained after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Central Asian countries have been undergoing a number of major political, social, cultural transformations.
Excerpted fromAida Sulova’s Press Release for News From Central Asia
Aida Sulova’s Curatorial Field Notes for News From Central Asia
I take a deep breath to read the news from Central Asia. News from the motherland worries the most. Born in Kyrgyzstan, former Soviet Republic in Central Asia, I now live in the US. When I call my mother, who lives in Kyrgyzstan, to ask for news, it is never about a new purse that she bought or my relative’s new born baby or anything of that sort, it is always about the politics in the region.
When I heard that “The Power of Jewelry” was going to be the theme of the New York City Jewelry Week in 2021, I wanted to propose an exhibition that would become a visual and tactile reflection of the news from Central Asia. Through the tapestry of creative visions, artworks, and field notes, I was hoping to portray the complex thinking and challenging statements of makers, designers, and artists from Central Asia.
Above: “Fate as a Burden” by Altynai Osmoeva, Kyrgyzstan: The heaviness of legacy, knowledge, and fate that women wear. Felt, metal (tin), crystals, hand printed silk lining; 2021; Attributions: Jewellery & styling : Altynai Osmoeva; Photography: Zemfira Abasova; Model: Kamila Sarieva; MUA: Bashirova Tokhtykhan; Assistant: Zhypariza Zhumagazieva.
The past year was full of cataclysms that made us turn back while looking forward. Who were we, what have we become, and what have we done? Looking at what I am today, I can see my identity formation through a number of major historical events: being born and brought up in the Soviet Union, experiencing Perestroika, collapse of the old regime, life in the newly independent Muslim state, the Tulip Revolution, the April Revolution, and immigration. Now living and witnessing recent political and social upheavals in the US, I thought I’d developed some sort of immunity to the experiences of that kind. But the news kept coming and my reaction to it proved that one will never develop an emotional stability for today’s atrocities.
After I announced the theme for the “News from Central Asia” show and sent out invitations to selected artists, I packed my stuff and went to Kyrgyzstan. The trip back home in the post-pandemic period was not only about visiting my family, friends, and memories. It was also about connecting with new people, places, and practices. Looking for new codes, symbols, and answers became a central point of the journey.
Above: Tiaras by Jol Jol, a young Kazakh jewelry brand whose work is based on roads, repeat the shape of seven rivers in Kazakhstan.
I met with all participating artists, both in person and online. We talked about contemporary art and how meaningful and empowering it is when it gets to sending a message into the world. How it can be displayed not only on the walls but also on the body. I told them about The Jewelry Library and its collection of books and jewelry and its projects that unify and inspire a community of makers and storytellers. I am glad that having spent time with artists, after our walks and talks, laughs and tears, I ended up with a collection of art pieces that will be presented at the “News from Central Asia” exhibition in New York.
How can one tell a story through a wearable object? It turns out that there are many distinctive ways! A jewelry piece called “Kinematic of Protests” is made by an artistic duo, Galina and Evgeny Boikov, who used the real silhouettes of protesters from the Kyrgyz Revolutions of 2005 and 2010 to show that “dynamics of gestures and poses of individuals in extreme situations are identical for all protests and revolutions around the world.” The Tajik artist Diana Rahmanova made a jewelry piece from the household objects that during the Civil War in Tajikistan served as body protection. Two Almaty-based artists restore a forgotten Uighur material culture through costumes, jewelry, folk dances, and stories. Jol Jol, a young Kazakh jewelry brand whose work is based on roads, proposed tiaras that repeat the shape of seven rivers in Kazakhstan, an area that used to be a concentration of life, trade, and culture, but now is drying up.
Saule Dyussenbina’s series of photos of people’s trash turned into sculptural jewelry was made during the Lazy Art residence at Issyk Kul Lake. Altynai Osmoeva uses a shape of a child’s bib to reinforce the Soviet upbringing style filled with male cult jewelry. Turkmen artist Jennet presented unusual wearable embroidered portraits of Turkmen women.
Above: Saule Dyussenbina’s photo series reinterpets trash as sculptural jewelry.
“But how would you trust Aida?” – one artist shared her story about her friends’ concern when she decided to send her mother’s jewelry for the show. “I trust her because trust is what we talk about and I hear what I’ve waited to hear. I’d like to tell the world about the richness of Uighur culture while everybody is busy with politics.”
“I lost my sleep when I read your concept and after we met in my studio. But that is a good feeling because I feel challenged and inspired,” Jakshylyk Chentemirov, a jeweler from Kyrgyzstan told me.
Left: Work by Jakshylyk Chentemirov
While I was doing my research on Central Asian jewelry art, I met a scholar Ekaterina Ermakova, who shared her article “From Folk Tradition to Original Jewelry Art,” which states: “In Central Asia, designer jewelry emerged in the 1970-1980s. It replaced traditional folk jewelry. The most important characteristics of this jewelry are the amount of information and freedom of choice. Today, three main stylistic directions have been formed. The first is the traditional school, within which the jewelers copy ancient jewelry using traditional materials. The second is ethnic style, the main task of which is not copying old forms, but creating a recognizable image associated with national culture. Third – contemporary artistic style based on individual perception of the national culture. In avant-garde artworks, the artist freely handles new jewelry art materials using wood, leather, felt, bone, silk.”
Above: Wearable frescoes by Almaty-based artist Guzel Zakir and look from Kashgariya Collection by Judy Ai.
Not all Central Asian artists feel safe and free to share their creative visions today. I’ve met artists who printed their artworks on coffee mugs to show them to the world. And while bringing some artworks for the “News from Central Asia” to the US, I had to go through security control and make a presentation about the artwork that the border officers called “weird looking.” The hardest was to find and ship the work of the artist from Turkmenistan. The borders are closed and locally controlled DHL is the only connecting point. Even while shipping the artworks and through dealing with logistics, customs, and state authorities, one can read the news and feel the temperature of the region.
IslBGWork by Shailoo Djekshenbaev.
News From Central Asia is curated by Aida Sulova and presented by The Jewelry Library for NYC Jewelry Week. The exhibition is on view November 15-21, 2021, 11am-7pm at The Jewelry Library, 1239 Broadway, Suite 500.
For more on the exhibition and to RSVP, click here. Follow curator Aida Sulova on Instagram @aidasulova. You can find more from The Jewelry Library on their website and Instagram @thejewelrylibrary.
Thanks to Aida Sulova for sharing insight into News From Central Asia with us. Text excerpted from press release and Curatorial Field Notes, both written by Aida Sulova. Images provided by Aida Sulova; image credits belong to the respective artists represented. Feature edited and compiled by Future Heirloom Editor Jackie Andrews.
Laleh Javaheri-Saatchi in Conversation with Dr. Kim Benzel, Curator in Charge of the Ancient Near Eastern Art Department at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Laleh Javaheri-Saatchi is a graduate student in Art History and Archaeology at Columbia University studying the arts of ancient West Asia and currently completing a Masters thesis. Her area of interest and research is in ancient forms of bodily ornamentation. Her passion for jewelry is rooted in her family history, Laleh comes from a multi-generational family of jewelers and watch dealers.
In her studies, she repeatedly encounters the theme of layered meanings embedded in ancient jewelry. Ancient jewelry pieces, beyond objects of mere external beauty, carry a multitude of enmeshed meanings: in the materials chosen, the colors, shapes and forms, the iconography displayed, as well as in the techniques of making. In this sense the study of ancient jewelry is akin to an investigation into embedded messages hidden beneath the superficial layers. This is a topic that Dr. Kim Benzel, Curator in Charge of the Ancient Near Eastern Art department at the Metropolitan Museum of Art knows very well. A scholar of ancient West Asia, an expert on ancient jewelry and a goldsmith herself, Dr. Benzel has written extensively on the inherent power and meanings embedded in the materials that make the exceptional jewelry pieces of the ancient world.
Image Above: Dr. Kim Benzel (Left) and Laleh Javaheri-Saatchi (Right)
For a podcast episode produced by Columbia University, Laleh had the opportunity to explore this subject further in conversation with Dr. Benzel. Through an intimate knowledge of materials and techniques, Dr. Benzel shares invaluable information about what it is that made jewelry so meaningful in ancient West Asia. The following are transcribed excerpts from the interview, which is available to listen in its entirety as a podcast episode entitled Ishtar Adorned.
Image Above: This exquisite assemblage of dangling gold leaves with carnelian and lapis lazuli beads made in the 3rd millennium BCE was found at one of the tombs of the Royal Cemetery of Ur and would have been meant to be worn as a headdress. An identical headdress adorned the forehead of Puabi. (Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, image credit www.metmuseum.org)
LALEH JAVAHERI-SAATCHI: Jewelry in ancient Mesopotamia was so much more than mere bodily decoration. We know from textual sources that materials, namely stones and metals such as lapis lazuli, carnelian, gold, or silver, were valued for their special inherent attributes, providing the wearer with protective and healing qualities. In addition, the manipulation of materials allows for yet another level of meaning. Can you speak to us a bit about the importance of the process of making and of meanings in materials?
DR. KIM BENZEL: In my writings what I focus on is not the making in isolation, it is really the chain of activation that starts with the materials. We know from textual sources that all the materials were very important, not only for outward qualities but for inner properties.
Gold for example is charged, not just because it is beautiful, but it is still listed today as among the noble metals because it is so pure and does not tarnish. In the ancient world gold was also given a special status, it was conceived as related to the divine from the very beginning. Its properties of not tarnishing, immutability, purity and shine were all aspects of Mesopotamian aesthetics that were highly valued and that were also equated with the divine. With gold, you have this material that we as humans from antiquity on have perceived as a pure material. There are all these rituals in ancient Mesopotamia that require human manipulation and intervention, gold does not need that. The material is already charged, and only then you add the craftsman or the jeweler. I would argue that in some of the jewelry that was made, especially the jewelry that is made for cult statues and is intimately associated with the divine, the making or manufacturing aspect is in many cases meant to erase the hand of the maker. It goes to this biblical tradition, and this is where it comes from, of a mortal cannot make things that are associated with the divine. There is anecdotal textual evidence that illustrates aspects of that. With the jewelry of Puabi, from The Royal Cemetery at Ur, which I was able to study up-close, what was really evident there was the process of not using solder, which they did have, but using pieces of gold and repeating a very labor-intensive process of heating and hammering, so as not to cut or solder and keep the gold pieces intact and seamless making it hard to perceive that there was a hand behind it. This exceedingly labor-intensive method was another way of activating the divine. It is this ritualized chain of activation from materials to making that in some way removes the hand of the maker. It is very prescribed and rarely does it vary. It just seems to me that the ritual prescription of how to make something was not only to create beauty, but for the expressed purpose of activating the next step, and in my opinion in Ur to activate those dead bodies to become perhaps divine in death or appear divine in death.
Ancient Mesopotamia refers to a region in West Asia that would have occupied modern day Iraq and parts of Iran, Turkey and Syria. The term refers to the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Puabi is the name of a Mesopotamian woman of high status from the 3rd millennium BCE whose rich burial was uncovered at the Royal Cemetery of Ur. The Royal Cemetery at Urrefers to a group of burials excavated at the site of the ancient Mesopotamian city of Ur (modern day Tell al-Muqayyar in Iraq), these burials were particularly rich in their contents thus believed to have belonged to the highest echelon of the elite of the time.
“It is that chain of activation that makes the jewelry particularly agentive; it has agency to do something to its wearer. In its totality once it is on the body, it does something to the body and my argument would be that it creates the semblance of the divine.”
Dr. Kim Benzel, from “Ishtar Adorned”, Ishtar Diaries podcast series.*
Image Above: This set of gold amulets from the early 2nd millennium BCE Mesopotamia was found as part of a hoard of precious objects. The amulets are meant to represent different gods and goddesses and the techniques of making, such as very fine granulation work, attest to the skill of the ancient goldsmiths. Such amulets would have adorned the bodies of those seeking supernatural protection. Refined ornaments would have been made to bedeck not only human bodies but also the bodies of cult statues of gods and goddesses. (Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, image credit www.metmuseum.org)
LALEH JAVAHERI-SAATCHI: On representations on Mesopotamian cylinder seals of the goddess Ishtar, we see the goddess wearing bracelets, necklaces, or the cross halter she is often seen adorned with. And in the textual sources we see her adorning herself with special stones such as lapis lazuli and carnelian before going into battle or before any great transformative event. Dr. Benzel, we understand why humans need this extra layer of protection, but why do gods?
Ishtar is the great Mesopotamian goddess of love and war.
DR. KIM BENZEL: [As mentioned before], the ultimate purpose of this chain of activation from materials to making and then adorning was to do something to the body. In the case of some jewelry produced in ancient Mesopotamia, it was intimately and directly involved with the divine. Much of the jewelry we know from ancient texts was made specifically to adorn cult statues of gods and goddesses, and as such they were the belongings of those gods and goddesses. We do not have many of these cult statues that have survived, presumably because the bodies of the statues were generally made of wood, they were then literally dressed in fine linen and jewelry and cared for like a biological deity. But on that assumption, that jewelry was not just only adorning the divine, it was an essential part of creating that divine image.
“That divine image was likely not divine until it had all its other dressings and adornments.”
Dr. Kim Benzel, from “Ishtar Adorned”, Ishtar Diaries podcast series.*
DR. KIM BENZEL: In terms of Ishtar, I would say that it is not so much why the gods needed the protection, but it is actually an essential part of being divine for Ishtar. There is no more persuasive argument for that than the very famous text that is titled The Descent of Ishtar. In short, Ishtar is going down to retrieve her lover from the underworld where her sister rules, and on her way down in order to enter the underworld she is required to take off one of her pieces of jewelry at each level as she descends. And when she gets to the bottom all her jewelry is off and it is at this point that we presume she is deactivated, she is no longer in possession of her power and no longer a threat to her sister, the queen of the underworld; and when she returns back up, she gets her jewelry back. And it is all those same pieces of jewelry, the bracelets and the anklets, the head jewelry, and the cross halter.
Image Above: A pair of gold earrings from the Royal Cemetery of the Mesopotamian city of Ur (modern day Tell al-Muqayyar in Iraq). These ornaments made in the 3rd millennium BCE were made from two pieces of thinly worked gold sheet shaped by the goldsmith into hallowed crescents. Other examples of these lunate style earrings were found in the Royal Cemetery of Ur and Puabi was found adorned with a similar oversized pair. (Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, image credit www.metmuseum.org)
“What is very clear is that the jewelry is her power in this text. And so why do gods need it because it is part of their power where we humans need it as a layer of protection.“
Dr. Kim Benzel, from “Ishtar Adorned”, Ishtar Diaries podcast series.*
DR. KIM BENZEL: There are also many other examples from Mesopotamia of rituals [involving jewelry]. There is a text from the site of Mari where it is the jewelry of Ishtar that is displayed and worshipped in its own right. If something has been on a body and has been in contact, sort of this idea of contagion, is it imbued with the same power as the biological deity itself?
Mari is an important ancient Mesopotamian city which would have been located in present day Syria.
There are so many ways of manifesting and representing the divine in ancient Mesopotamia. The fact that this jewelry presumably had touched Ishtar, made it a substitute or a surrogate for Ishtar, as powerful and as imbued with this much agency as the goddess herself. There are also from the 3rd millennium BCE to the 1st millennium BCE many curses in burials warning about jewelry being taken off the body. The jewelry is specifically called out. So it is a very charged category of object in the ancient world, much more so than the agency that we assign today to stones or particular metals with healing or protective properties or particular jewelry pieces we are attached to. It’s on a whole other level in the ancient world.
For more on this topic, you can listen to the full conversation from Ishtar Adorned episode of the Ishtar Diaries podcast series here. You can follow Laleh Javaheri-Saatchi on Instagram @the_body_ornamented, and learn more about Dr. Kim Benzel here.
We’re excited to share an incredible behind-the-scenes look at the ceremonies, traditions, and jewelry of an Indian-Catholic Wedding, with Tania Kottoor. Tania gave us insight into the designing and planning process of her own wedding in Antigua, Guatemala. This feature includes a combination of Tania’s own writing and her responses to some of our interview questions, diving deeper into some of her choices, paired with stunning images from the ceremonies. We hope you enjoy Tania’s story.
Mylanchi Day
Mylanchi Day, also know as Henna Night, is about the Beautification of the Bride.
The Bride’s first Mylanchi outfit features Moti jewelry with clusters of tiny ivory pearls riveted in plated gold. The staple Kerala jhumkas, maang-tika, bracelets, nose ring and anklets were hand-selected to complete the regal look.
All of the pieces for this look are from Mahira Jewels, except for the bangles, which were sourced from markets throughout Delhi.
Future Heirloom: Why is jewelry such a significant part of the wedding ceremonies?
Tania Kottoor: The jewelry that you buy your daughter for her wedding day goes to her and her future household. They’re investment pieces that turn into treasured family heirlooms.
Outfit 2 for Mylanchi Day shown above. Each gold-washed metal ear cuff has five dangling strings adorned with semi precious sapphire stones, as well as crystals at the end of each string. This was a custom piece by Mahira Jewels, detail shots are below.
FH: Could you give us some insight into your personal feelings about the jewelry? Why was it important to you to select what you did?
TK: For the first Mylanchi outfit, the clustering of the pearls was a very specific design from South India and it was very difficult to source in North India. It took me days and days to find exactly what I wanted, but I wanted to make sure my entire outfit evoked my South-Indian heritage. For the second Mylanchi outfit, it was more of a contemporary design to reflect my personal style. I like to play with feminine and androgynous silhouettes. The second outfit along with the ear cuffs reflected that juxtaposition.
For the Knanaya Catholic Ceremony, the Bride wore natural Colombian emeralds in the form of drop earrings and a ring. Both were custom-designed in Brooklyn, NY at Emerald Gem Exchange with owner Siva Muthiah. The creation of these pieces took about six months. The Bride selected the stones from various sourced emeralds and approved the final mold before the ring was created.
For the ring, a 4.36 carat natural Colombian emerald cut emerald was set into a sculptural platinum band that curves around the emerald center stone, surrounded by VS diamond melee. The drop earrings worn by the Bride are natural emerald cut Colombian emeralds, 2.69 carat fused with 18K white gold and surrounded by VS diamonds.
FH: In South Asian culture, do brides typically seek out custom jewelry for the wedding, or were you looking to create more unique looks?
TK: Normally brides go to a jewelry store to try on jewelry and see what best suits them and their overall look. Since it’s such a huge expense, jewelry shopping is typically a family affair. At times, jewelry is gifted by the in-laws. Customization is an extension of someone’s personality and I wanted that to be shown through every aspect of the wedding. I took time to conceptualize and design mood boards and sketches of 75 outfits and 6 jewelry pieces. I truly believe bespoke services are the future.
Emerald is known as “The Royal Gem,” to the Maharajas (Kings) and Maharanis (Queens) of India, where jewels are an important part of the nation’s history. The Mughal Emperors who ruled India, meticulously carved Emerald stones for settings into rings, turban ornaments, heavy bib necklaces, and encrusted the handle of daggers. The Vedic scriptures of India associate the emerald with marriage and hope. Emerald is also the symbol of love and fidelity, as well as a powerful emotive symbol of status and power.
During the Knanaya Catholic Ceremony, Tania’s husband ties a Thaali, a pendant with a cross, a symbol of Christianity, on a gold medallion shaped like a heart, shown above and below.
TK: The cross on the Thaali is made with 21 minute buds. My mother-in-law bought it during her trip to Kerala, India. I requested white gold pendant with 21 diamonds. After the wedding, I added the Thaali to a very thin platinum chain for everyday wear.
The number 21 is the result of 3X7 = the trinity (the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit) + seven sacraments. The threads to tie the Thaali around my neck are taken from the “Manthrakodi (silk sari).” Seven pieces of threads are taken and they are folded into three. This signifies three persons of the trinity and seven sacraments. The husband ties the thaali on the neck of the bride. This kind of knot is known as male knot (Aankettu) symbolizing the stability of marriage. The Thaali is considered to be the most prestigious token of love offered to her by her husband during the ceremony.
For the Reception, the Bride wore 22 karat yellow gold from ear to wrist. A carved “Rose” set which included a choker necklace, ear studs, and a bracelet. The set, seen below, was hand-crafted in Raipur, India by local artisans. These pieces took about three months to create, due to its intricacy.
FH: We know you followed the custom of “Something borrowed, something blue…” when selecting your jeweler. Tell us more!
TK: I followed the emerald route for my “Something New,” which consisted of emerald drop earrings plus a gold choker, studs and a bracelet. The “Something Blue,” would be the sapphire beaded ear cuffs. My “Something Borrowed” was my grandma’s marquise ruby ring, which was partnered with my mother’s wedding sari that I had repurposed into a strapless gown. This was so important to me, because it connected 3 generations of women in one look.
Shown below: “something borrowed,” a marquise ruby ring from the Bride’s grandmother.
