Ladakh is a dry, high-altitude region in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir and its people have a highly distinctive style of dress and unique and interesting jewelry. The most recognizable ornament of Ladakhi women is a turquoise studded headdress called Perak.
There is a post on my blog dedicated exclusively to the Perak and in my today`s article, We want to talk about other jewelry worn by Ladakhi women. Perak, being an impressive ornament on its own, additionally serves as a perfect display for numerous other hanging jewelry pieces that can be attached to it.
Those who can afford it attach a separate piece of cloth to the left side of the Perak decorated with up to ten vertical lines of coral ending in cowrie shells. To hold the Perak in place silver chains are used.
Below the chains hang flat silver plaques, usually with an endless knot motif of the auspicious and luck-bringing design, one of the Eight Auspicious Emblems of Buddhism from which dangle small bells.
Traditional Jewellery of Ladakh For Women :
1. Perak
Around their wrists, Ladakhi women wear conch shell bracelets. These bracelets are normally worn throughout a woman’s life. Wealthier women instead of conch shells wear silver bracelets of similar shape.
2. Chatelaine
Chatelaine is worn on their left shoulder by Ladakhi women, and from the belt around the waist, they hang one or a pair of silver or brass disks usually bearing the endless knot, from which six or seven lines of cowrie shells strung with little bells at the end.
3. Earrings
Earrings often consist of several strings of beads, usually of coral, turquoise, glass, or mother-of-pearl, but most favored are those of small freshwater pearls.
4. Necklaces
Ladakhi women wear at least one or two necklaces. One is typically an amulet of silver or gold and set with turquoise or coral hung on a string of pearls. A second necklace may be of strands of coral, turquoise, amber, and mother-of-pearl beads.
Upper class women also wear a stiff biblike collar piece made from a piece of padded red cloth onto which a large central silver amulet is stitched along with coral, turquoise, amber, carnelian, pearl, mother-of-pearl, and silver beads.
5. Bracelets
Around their wrists, Ladakhi women wear conch shell bracelets. These bracelets are normally worn throughout a woman’s life. Wealthier women instead of conch shells wear silver bracelets of similar shape.
6. Jugin
Around their wrists, Ladakhi women wear conch bracelets. These bracelets usually worn throughout a woman’s life. Richer women instead wear similarly shaped silver bracelets.
Tribal Jewellery of Ladakh
1. Perag:
Perag (padrag) is probably Ladakh’s most famous and most famous jewelry. It is also one of the most permanent symbols of Ladakhi’s woman, whose head is covered with a long-tapered band of turquoise (Yu) lines dotted with silver and gold pendants, coral, and pearls.
Although it is difficult to trace the origin of Perag, it suggested that the headdress introduced to Ladakh by one of the queens and later replaced the previous form of female headgear.
2. Gau Pendant:
Well, the next precious accessory we bring to you is a gau or cow. It is a fist-sized hexagonal or octagonal golden amulet, enameled along with a delicate and intricate design with gems and pearls. Pemalabtse is playing with a butterfly-based design. Women in Ladakh appreciate Pemalabze for its feminine and delicate qualities.
Traditional Jewellery of Ladakh For Men
Ladakh men also usually dress up with a little jewelry. They wear silver or copper amulet boxes of various shapes, hoop earrings with a single turquoise stone on the left ear, and a single turquoise stone on the silk cord around the neck.
