Pendant from a Woman's Headpiece

This pendant was one of a pair and was part of a woman's headpiece. The triangle is cast, the loops soldered on. The motif combines rosettes, spirals, circles, and rhombic granulation clusters, and is framed by a bead-molded border. The top loop connects to a smaller rhombic element with circle and semicircle filigree, and to an elongated hook with square and double-dot décor. Ten chains hanging down from the five bottom loops, and each has a stylized hand pendant at its end.

The back of the pendant has an Arabic stamp with the date: nusfi 128x. The term "nusfi" means "half," and the last number of the date is lost, but it must be a number in the later 1280s AH(AD late 1860s-early 1870s).

In addition, there is the name of the silversmith engraved in Hebrew: Sh(lomo) Sharayan, mahasit. The same silversmith is named on the pendants of Walters 57.2313. The term "mahasit" means "half".