ear pendant

Turquoise and brass ear pendant of the 'akor' or lotus bud style. Formed of three brass shapes set one above the other, inlaid with pieces of turquoise. The top shape is in the form of a lotus bud, the middle one is circular and the lower shape is like a four-petalled flower around a centre, the lower petal slightly elongated and pointing downwards. The reverse of the top piece has two bent metal wires. The lower two pieces are set back so as to hang inside the upper piece.

This type of ear ornament was popular in Lhasa and Central Tibet, hung facing forwards so the stones are clearly visible. Because they are heavy, they are either attached to a headdress or hung over the head. Turquoise is found in Tibet and, apart from being a beautiful and valuable adornment, is also believed to have amuletic and medicinal properties. It is said to avert the evil eye and remove toxins from the body. Its healing properties are said to include the alleviation of poisoning and all heat diseases associated with the liver.

Collection Information

These objects are only a part of our collections, of which there are more than 350,000 objects. This information comes from our collections database. Some of this is incomplete and there may be errors. This part of the website is also still under construction, so there may be some fields repeated or incorrectly formatted information.

The database sometimes uses language taken from historical documents to help research, which may now appear outdated and even offensive. The database also includes information on objects that are considered secret or sacred by some communities.

If you have any further information about objects in our collections or can suggest corrections to our information, please contact us: enquiry@horniman.ac.uk