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Turkmen jewelry, however, is more than just an expression of aesthetic sense and splendor, it is a status symbol and a marker for the age group the woman wearing it belongs to. It satisfies the need for jewelry as well as the vanity of the individual woman. At the same time, it serves as an indicator of her social and ethnic affiliation und the relations of the people within the group. The valuable silver jewelry of the Turkmen, often fire-gilded and covered with carnelians or rhinestones not only accentuates its beauty, but it also serves as an amulet, thus as protection of its wearer from calamitous powers. As a prestigious object this jewelry constituted the family’s investment into which economic surpluses could be fed and which they have always reverted to during times of need.

This argentine treasure from the steppes of middle Asia – collected and carefully sheltered by two lovers of jewelry – is for the first time being introduced to the public with this special exhibition.