Item Ref
BM/AU
The Turkmen use the word 'tumar' to refer to a type of pectoral pendant or amulet and is based on the principle of the rhombus which consists of three parts - the upper part; the tumar proper with the symbolic mountain motif and vertical west-east orientation; a middle part consisting of a 'bozbend' tube with a horizontal west-east orientation and a lower part consisting of an inverted mountain motif from which silver, luminous world-spheres fall as pendants. The trichotomic world-picture recurs in all three parts.
In Soviet ethnography, tumar pectoral ornaments are regarded almost exclusively as amulets, an interpretation which can be attributed to Islamic influence and its interpretation of the tumar. I share the view with others that this is not the case and its true meaning should be sought in the ancient nomadic art of the Turco-Mongols.
This magnificent tumar dates to the mid-3rd quarter of the 19th century and is part-gilded on silver, carnelians in cabochon-cut and woollen cloth underlay coloured red and green.
Size: 30cm wide x 33cm deep including tassels. (12" x 13")
SOLD