This dazzling display of Khorezm jewellery is made from gold-plated silver studded with turquoise (also known as 'feruza'), orange coral - a precious commodity in a land-locked oasis - pieces of jade and even tiger claws! There are nose-rings, earrings, tiaras, necklaces and fertility amulets complete with inscribed Koranic verses. Note the decorative keys on the principal necklace which indicate the number of chests containing clothing or bedding possessed by the owner. There is also a fancy head-dress topped with bird feathers which would have been worn by a newly married woman. Interestingly, today such women (or 'kellins') continue to wear hats for the first year of marriage, although they are usually made of gaudy cloth and sequins rather than coral and silver.
A girl would have been given a complete set of jewellery for her wedding day which sometimes weighed as much as twenty five kilogrammes! She would continue to wear this, although, since a woman was always veiled when outside or in the presence of strangers, the only people who would appreciate it were other family members.