Vintage Kuchi tribal intaglio ring

The word 'kuchi' comes from Dari language and means 'nomad'. It is used to describe nomadic (and nowadays also semi-sedentary) people from Pashtun origin, native to (especially) Northern Afghanistan regions.

The Kuchi tribes have roamed Afghanistan for thousands of years, following ancient migratory routes, constantly looking for fresh pastures and water to graze their animals.  

Next to their wool and cashmere products (which make up nearly 50% of the total volume produced in Afghanistan), the Kuchi people are also very well-known for their colorful appearance, with beautiful clothes in the most extraordinary bright colors and eyecatching tribal jewelry made with brass or (Tibetan) silver, intricate filigree work, colorful glass and precious gemstones.

This beautiful ring shows a special technique that can often be found in Kuchi jewelry; an intaglio centerpiece. Intaglio is a term used for different kinds of techniques used to engrave depictions into (gem- / semi-precious) stones. The history of this can be traced back as early as 6th century BC in Europe, when new tools and techniques became available for the ancient Greek, that made it possible to make very precisely detailed engravings into hard materials.

As with many accomplishments of the Greek, also this technique was quickly adopted by the Romans, where it became well-beloved for making both decorative and practical items. A good example of this latter one is how the intaglio technique was made to use seal rings for officiaries, to stamp their validation onto important legal documents. And also of course, owning intaglio jewelry was a major display of wealth. Because not only were the precious stones used as materials already very expensive in themself, but the specialised, labour-intensive techniques used to engrave them, contributed enormously to their value.

The art of gem engraving got slowly lost over the later era's of the Roman Empire, but got a huge revival from the 15th century on, starting in Italy when many of these pieces were unearthed again with the archaelogical excavations of ancient Roman sites. The interest for the special art and the techniques used to make them has since spread all over the world and is nowadays also found often in Kuchi tribal jewelry. Next to mimicking ancient Greek and Roman designs, also a lot of more cultural specific symbolism can be found. In Kuchi tribal jewelry for example a lot of intaglio's carry the depiction of animals that were/are relevant for their nomadic and semi-sedentary lifestyle, such as antilopes, gazelles, horses and deer. This  ring here in our shop shows (probably) an antilope.

Sizes; the intaglio centerpiece has a diameter of approximately 20 millimeters. The inside diameter of the ring (wearable size) is 17x19 millimeters (a bit of a flattened-circle shape the inside has). Weight is approximately 10 grams.

Due to its vintage origin, this ring might show some minor signs from its previous usage, but overall it is in very good condition.

Only one available.