WEARABLE HERITAGE

Acknowledgements

 

Wearable heritage translates in Dutch as ‘Draagbaar Erfgoed’ a term conveniently incorporating elements of ‘portable heritage’ apart from costume and jewelry. Although in English this translates slightly different, I have still chosen the term ‘wearable’. Of course because the emphasis in these pages is on heritage in the realm of costume and jewelry. Nevertheless, I sometimes wander slightly beyond this meaning to include elements characterized as portable heritage that show links to costume and jewelry, such as jewelry containers and kohl pots for example. Or the bridal saddle in the upper left image on of this page.

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One of the main reasons for this site is my own fascination with heritage studies. In these pages I have tried to raise awareness on different cultures, show and tell about my own collection and inform you about my research and activities. Most of the objects presented here are between 50 and 200 years old. I do not strive for a complete documentation of costume or jewelry in the region of Asia and North Africa; many excellent books have already been written on the subject. I merely want to add information about our own collection and research. I have also tried to stay away from too many geographical divisions in this website; I would like to emphasize a different, more general view on costume and jewelry and where possible emphasize cross-cultural connections.

 

These pages are largely filled with pictures taken from the Wearable Heritage collection. Objects not in the collection, but only presented here as photographs, were largely taken by me in Egypt over the past 20 years. When pictures of others were used, a reference is given where possible. If you recognize an image as not bering refered to correctly, please do not hesitate to contact me.