The State Museum of the State Cultural Center of Turkmenistan hosted the opening of an exhibition entitled “Jewelry art – the treasury of national heritage”, the newspaper “Neutral Turkmenistan” reports.
More than 80 pieces of jewelry art have been displayed at the exhibition. The collection belonged once to Natalie Markarian-Fard, a collector from Switzerland, and were handed over to Turkmenistan.
There are unique rarities among the exhibits that are found in a single copy. For example, a silver spinning wheel decorated with gold plates, a musical instrument gopuz, a double-sided comb and a silver belt clip.
The collection also includes all kinds of women’s jewelry, children’s jewelry, as well as some horse equipment.
Natalie Markarian-Fard was born in Tehran (Iran) on 16 November 1933, and died in Germany in February 2022. She had a passion for artworks since childhood, and her first exhibits were a collection of Russian enameled caskets.
In 1967, at the Tehran Art Bazaar, Natalie Markarian-Fard bought a small silver plate, neatly decorated with gilded ornaments and inserts of red carnelian. Natalie Markaryan-Fard was fascinated by the beauty of this item and the high quality of manufacture. Later she found out that this item was once part of a leather amulet bag “heikel“, used by Turkmen women. After that, she turned her attention to Turkmen jewelry.
In her memoirs, the collector writes: “For many years I have been interested in and admired the Turkmen history and culture, especially the Turkmen jewelry craftsmanship. By the 1980s, I managed to collect a significant collection, part of which I would like to donate to one of the museums of Turkmenistan. I would be very glad to make at least a small contribution to the preservation of the cultural heritage of the Turkmen people.”///nCa, 26 July 2022 (photo source – TDH)