A RUBY-SET 'MAKARA HEAD' GOLD BANGLE (KADA)
Madras (Chennai), Tamil Nadu, South India, 19th century

Of circular shape, made of hyper-purified gold sheets worked with repoussé and chased decoration to render the makara scales and crests, the two makara head terminals holding in their mouths a stylised rudraksha bead with a band of rosettes in the centre, their eyes and the screw at the top set with untested rubies, 5.2cm diam. and 7.5cm at the highest point, 55.18gr.

The iconic design and warm gold tone of our bracelet (kada) are usually attributed to Madras (Chennai), the most prominent production centre of these 'makara head' bangles, located close to the South Indian gold mines, which yielded the purest gold (U. Balakrishnan, Dance of the Peacock: Jewellery Traditions of India, 2010, p. 31). Also made in silver, these ornaments were worn by Rajas and male court members as a mark of favour and status (O. Untracht, Traditional Jewelry of India, 2008, p. 254, fig. 578). In fact, jewellery in India was not the exclusive prerogative of women; often, the adornment of male gods and kings rivalled those of their female counterparts.

The stylised spherical element placed in-between the makara heads is supposed to represent a rudraksha bead, the seed of the fruit of the Elaeocarpus angustifolius, an autochthonous tree believed to be dear to the Hindu god Shiva. Endowed with medicinal and amuletic properties, rudraksha beads are used as rosaries all over the Subcontinent (see U. Balakrishnan, 2010, p. 227), but they are particularly beloved in the southern territories given their strong link to Shaiva devotion. For comparable examples of our lot, please see the Victoria and Albert Museum's collection, London (inv. no. 03291(IS)) and the auction catalogue of Christie's London, 10 June 2015, lot 76.