Ethnic Jewellery and Adornment. A short book review.
I am an ethnic jewelry book junkie.
It’s kind of an obsession. I even buy tribal jewelry books in languages I can't read. When I see a new book or one I haven’t seen before I snatch it up. And, fast! Often when these specialty books go out of print they are difficult to obtain and the price sky rockets.
Recently, I became aware of a fairly new publication, Ethnic Jewellery and Adornment by Truus and Joost Daalder of Australia. The book features part of the Daalders' personal ethnic jewelry collection and pieces from the South Australian Museum. The luscious photographs were taken by their son, Jeremy Daalder.
The book has a hefty price tag so I did a little research before making the purchase. All the reviews I read were glowing. All the photographs I saw of the gorgeous tribal jewelry were stunning. And, I found it on sale at 25% off! Right after I purchased it the seller removed the sale price. Whew! Just in time! However, the book is worth every penny. Sale priced or not!
It was delivered while I was out of town vending. When I arrived home the package was waiting for me. Even though it was the wee hours of the morning I excitedly opened the box and then carefully removed the shrink wrap from the book. I thumbed through the pages gazing at the lovely photographs of ethnic and tribal jewelry from Australia, Oceania, Asia, and Africa. Particularly of note is the unusual, primitive jewelry collection from the aboriginal peoples of Australia. These pieces are not usually seen in ethnic jewellery books.
The Daalders have made a huge and invaluable contribution to the world of jewelry. If you are a tribal jewelry lover, collector, researcher, scholar, or historian I highly recommend this beautiful publication.
Don’t let the price put you off. At 420 pages, this huge tome is worth every penny. I recommend getting it now before it’s too late.
