Unusual Indian Silver Bracelet (Gajre)

This flexible bracelet has a leather base onto which have been attached silver balls (with attendant granulation work), and curved silver panels that are seemingly composed of dozens of tiny spheres. These panels probably are meant to imitate the silver spheres (gajre) that are rigidly attached by means of a silver wire to the body of the bracelet on similar bracelets that are themselves designed to imitate bracelets to which dozens of tint pearls are tightly attached. The clusters of seed pearls used in the more extravagant versions of this bracelet were said to emulate bunched jasmine buds. (See Bala Krishnan, 1999, p. 146, for an example.)

The mixing of the two aspects – the larger silver spheres and the panels with small ball-like decoration is unusual.

The bracelet opens by means of a pin that is pulled out to release a hinge.

The bracelet has excellent age and wear.  It is wearable, for a small lady’s wrist.