Berber Pendant with Tassel Morocco

Overall Condition: Good to Fair. Some of our beads have traveled at least three continents, and have graced numerous owners.

Damage/Repair: Embedded Dirt, Pits, Dents in metal beads, Chips, Pits

Morocco is well known for its artisans and silversmiths, and the jewelry they create - whether new or antique - draws on history and symbolism.

The Berber People and the jewelry of their culture is a traditional style of jewelry worn mainly by women in the rural areas of the Maghreb region (Northwestern Africa). Berber silversmiths and artisans created intricate jewelry designs with distinct regional variations.

Berber women often receive elaborate silver or other jewelry from their husbands when they get married, as this ensures that she has her own wealth in the event of an emergency or of becoming a widow. You will often see official coins used as adornments to jewelry so that if necessary, they could be broken off and sold. Jewelry is also easy to take during annual migrations so you were always able to take the valuable pieces with you. Women also hand their jewelry down from generation to generation, maintaining their ethnic identity and cultural traditions.

Berber jewelry often features beads of coral, or semi-precious stones, coins, chains, and intricate silver designs. The shapes and forms the jewelry takes draws from Berber symbology, Islamic tradition, and some are intended to ward off evil.

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