Humans have been adorning themselves with jewellery or alankara from time immemorial. Archaeologists have unearthed bits of shells, beads and bones, depicting jewellery from pre-historic settlements that corroborates this theory. In India, we can trace emergence of jewellery to the Indus Valley Civilization, when intricate, sophisticated and highly evolved pieces of ornaments were created, using gold, silver, copper, ivory and various kinds of semi-precious stones and beads. Ancient India has given us evidences too in sculpture, painting and text, of both men and women bedecked in ornaments. Foreign travellers to India have written about India’s ancient society flushed with an abundance of gold, pearl and precious stones. With the arrival of Moghuls, Indian jewellery saw an unprecedented synthesis of luxurious designs and craftmanship that heralded new methods of jewellery making.
Alankaara Collections
