March 20 - July 11, 2010

When Gold Blossoms: Indian Jewelry from the Susan L. Beningson Collection celebrates the dazzling beauty and awe-inspiring technical craftsmanship of Indian jewelry with more than 150 pieces spanning 2,000 years, primarily from South India. The title alludes to the preference for gold in South Indian jewelry—North Indian jewelry, on the other hand, is known primarily for the use of precious and semiprecious stones—as well as to the strong influence of nature on the designs, from ear studs in the form of a lotus to armbands featuring petal-and-leaf weaving. When Gold Blossoms includes spectacular rings, anklets, earrings, hair pendants, jeweled crowns, ivory combs, and an elaborate swing and a gold throne for a deity. Some of the pieces are worn in daily life, others dedicated to deities in Hindu temples. Photographs from the 19th and 20th centuries will be displayed alongside the jewelry to provide a fuller understanding of the ways in which jewelry is worn and used.

Note: Visit the exhibition free of charge from 1–4 pm on Fridays, April 9, May 21, and June 11.

International Museum Day: FREE ADMISSION ON MAY 18

Description

In India, jewelry is worn both for its ornamental and symbolic qualities. Historically, men and women have worn jewelry, literally, from head to toe, for the sake of its beauty and for its auspicious nature. It offers protection and promises prosperity. Beauty is believed to be inherently powerful, but jewelry's influence on a wearer's fortunes is also understood to lie in the power of its materials. In early Vedic texts, gold and jewels are deemed sacred. In Indian tradition, gold purifies while gems channel the energies of the planets.

Almost all Hindu deities appear extensively bejeweled, and India's religious practices have for millennia included the gift of gold and jewels to the gods. "Even the jingle of your ankle bells makes him long to meet you" reads a line of Indian poetry. To the lover, jewelry enhances the beloved's forms and movements with its contours and sounds. In society, however, the semantics of jewelry are paramount. Sectarian symbols and regionally specific designs often identify a wearer's origins and beliefs. Gold anklets, double-strand pearls, and turban ornaments were once the prerogative of rulers.

Forehead pendants, bracelets, marriage necklaces, anklets, and toe rings are still the signs of a married woman. To be without jewelry is to be outcast in India—no jewelry is worn by either the ascetic who renounces society, or the widow whom society rejects. One of the finest collections of its kind, the Susan L. Beningson Collection specializes in jewelry for women and deities. Pieces date from the first to the 20th century with a majority from the 18th and the 19th centuries. When Gold Blossoms is divided into three realms of experience: Jewelers, Women (The Sixteen Adornments), and Deities.

When Gold Blossoms was made possible by the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation, Emory University, and community partners. Support for educational programs is provided in part by the Emory University Strategic Initiative in Religion and the Arts. Visit the official Web site at carlos.emory.edu/when-gold-blossoms.