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Source Description
Ornate filigree jewelry was historically made in Ethiopia for royals and nobility by specialized silversmiths trained through long apprenticeships. This silver necklace is composed of numerous box-shaped amulet pendants (<em>tälsäm)</em> meant to ward off the evil eye or other dangers. Linked to Islamic amuletic practices, the boxes are effective whether empty or whether they contain magical or prayerful texts. Their fine filigree and granulation work is characteristic of Harar as well as the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian city of Aksum.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
692270
label
Necklace (ashän ketab) with amulet pendants (tälsäm)
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
692270
contentType
object
title
Necklace (ashän ketab) with amulet pendants (tälsäm)
description
Ornate filigree jewelry was historically made in Ethiopia for royals and nobility by specialized silversmiths trained through long apprenticeships. This silver necklace is composed of numerous box-shaped amulet pendants (<em>tälsäm)</em> meant to ward off the evil eye or other dangers. Linked to Islamic amuletic practices, the boxes are effective whether empty or whether they contain magical or prayerful texts. Their fine filigree and granulation work is characteristic of Harar as well as the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian city of Aksum.
date
late 1800s or early 1900s
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Jewelry
imageCount
1
source
import
cul
Africa, East Africa, Ethiopia, unknown silversmith
accession
2025.152
Source extras
tec
silver alloy
tombstone
Necklace (ashän ketab) with amulet pendants (tälsäm), late 1800s or early 1900s. Africa, East Africa, Ethiopia, unknown silversmith. Silver alloy. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Raymond A. Silverman, 2025.152
collection
African Art
didYouKnow
Ethiopian silver jewelry is made by melting high-purity Maria Theresa thaler coins made from the 1700s to the 1900s.
creditline
Gift of Raymond A. Silverman
updatedAt
2026-05-29 09:18:17.576000
sourceId
692270
dept
African Art
coll
African Art
med
silver alloy
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
c43afc83e1b3777e