KatieO Recommended Jewelry Books!

KatieO has an immense collection of jewelry related books from all over the world. Many of these books can be found on amazon.com. You will find a link to this book as well as purchase information in the amazon.com section of this page. KatieO highly recommends these books as they have been an invaluable asset to her collection, and a means to increase her knowledge of the jewelry components she uses in her designs.

Title: A World of necklaces - Africa, Asia, Oceania, America
Author: Anne Leurquin
ISBN#: 88-8491-550-3

An excerpt from the inside front cover

"Describing necklaces means entering a universe that is both feminine and  masculine.  Although generally only women wear necklaces, as in the Maghreb, in other societies like the Fulani-Bororo of Mali, men paint and adorn themselves, for ritual ceremonies, as well. The inherited function of jewellery in these traditional societies helps to explain these differing attitudes.  Jewellery rarely serves a solely aesthetic purpose as it is primarily moored in the social, religious, and political contexts which lend it meaning.... Throughout this book the author endeavors to unravel the intricate uses of these necklaces, describe their materials, and emphasizes the originality of artisans who have enriched a cultural patrimony long threatened by extinction."