Jewelry of Kyrgyz Women in the 18th-20th Centuries.

Women's Jewelry by Kyrgyz Jewelers

Women's jewelry made by local jewelers is an essential attribute of the traditional attire of a Kyrgyz woman. The ancient wedding headdress—shekulë—is richly decorated and consists of a tall cap on a frame, adorned with rows of stamped silver plates, coral threads, and glass beads.

The set of a woman's adornments included various earrings: stamped (round, oval, pear-shaped), usually made of two joined halves, as well as forged ones with simple plant patterns. In the south, large openwork earrings in the shape of a circle or crescent, decorated with filigree and granulation, were worn.

The distinctive temporal-chest ornaments (soykë zhelbirooch) consist of two large cones with hooks, wrapped in silver wire and connected by chains adorned with small leaf-shaped plates.

On the chest, the chains were connected to an amulet box—a triangular or rectangular box decorated with blackened patterns and inlays of semi-precious stones. Such an ornament was worn on festive occasions.

Bilerik—open bracelets—could be twisted or flat with an expanding central part, also decorated with a graphic blackened pattern. Silver rings and signet rings (shakék) are simple in shape, featuring elegant plant ornamentation and inlays of semi-precious stones.

Various buttons (topchu) usually served as both fasteners and decorations for clothing. Very striking are large hollow buttons with a convex embossed pattern, ending in a pyramid of granulation. In the north, convex hemispherical buttons with a blackened pattern on the upper part are common, while in the southern regions, buttons (shuru-topchu) resembling fruits or berries are found, made from a large oval coral bead mounted on a silver rod with a group of granulation on one end and a loop on the other.

Kyrgyz Blacksmiths and Jewelers of the 18th-20th Centuries.