South Indian Gold Makara Bracelet

Gold ‘Makara’ Bracelet with Rubies

This beautiful two-part, hinged fleshy gold bracelet is typical of South Indian work. Comprising repoussed and chased gold sheet over a lac core, it has two fierce makara head terminals. Each has a pair of protruding eyeballs inset with rubies.

Between the makaras, in their gaping mouths, is a magical, spherical jewel decorated in high relief with floral motifs. The jewel is surmounted by a lotus petal finial that holds a screw that keeps the two halves of the bracelet together. The screw is topped by a fifth ruby.

The makaras that make up the two terminals are repoussed with further makara heads at their ends, and these emit from their mouths the two halves of the bracelets which in turn are boldly repoussed with flowers interspersed by tiger stripe-like bands.

The screwing mechanism that holds the two halves of the bracelet together screws tightly and firmly. It screws anti-clockwise which is more typically associated with eighteenth century Indian thread mechanisms.

This example is particularly fine with the attention to detail that has been paid to its construction. There are no apparent dents or losses.

Utracht (1997, p.254) illustrates an example in silver, and comments that such bracelets also were made in gold (as is the example here) and that they were given by rajas to their male subjects as a mark of favour. Indeed, examples in gold were made exclusively for royal households.

Utracht, O., Traditional Jewelry of India, Thames & Hudson, 1997.

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