The beauty of Tuareg goldsmith goes beyond simple jewels or amulets that are worn as accessories, since these pieces are the reflection of a culture, of the idiosyncrasy of the Tuareg people, who have made endless trips through the Sahara Desert. Trips in which its men with sun-tanned skin and blue turbans protect their women, who look like goddesses full of shine, for their silver jewellery, abundant and curly hair; faithful companions on their journeys, where metals, jewellery, livestock, species and crafts abound, which they carry in their caravans to trade.

La Orfebrería Tuareg Joyas Tuareg goldsmith

For this reason, when speaking of the Tuareg goldsmith, we must emphasize that this people descended from the ancient nomadic tribes, the Amazon or Berber, and that they made their trips through the Sahara desert; they had a geographical location that encompassed the territories of Mali, Burkina Faso, Algeria, Niger and Libya, and despite their mix, today they have their own writing “tifinagh”, and their religion is Islam, despite the fact that they keep their own system of laws and justice and certain ancient beliefs.

Some of these beliefs are based on pre-Islamic dogmas that are manifested through Tuareg crafts and silver work, in which the decoration of the body stands out, using geometric objects with a special symbolism. They are a series of figures that include equilateral triangles, rhombuses, arrowheads that are very carefully stylized, as well as the famous silver crosses.

Each of these objects of the Tuareg goldsmith carry an implicit message for this people, who despite the Islamic religion, continue to use them to protect themselves, for example, from the evil eye. Likewise, the Tuareg people defend the belief of healing through metals such as copper and stones such as coral.

La Orfebreria Tuareg Pulseras

An important aspect of Tuareg goldsmith is the fact that the most used metal is silver, and they rarely make gold ornaments, they also believe that iron is an evil metal that brings negative effects to those who carry it with them. As for their designs, we must point out that they mostly use animal figures, plants and astrological elements, because divination is very important to them; so it is common to find jewellery with moons, suns or stars as the main reason for their designs.

On the other hand, Tuareg goldsmith itself is considered to be an art, which does not include accessories, jewellery and ornaments, but rather blacksmiths, called inadem, also make weapons, which represent their warrior nature, such as the well-known traditional sword with cross-shaped hilt, called takuba, daggers like elmoshi and telek, daggers like azegiz and gozma and spears or allagh.

Tuareg goldsmith includes among the objects it manufactures, articles for daily life, made of resistant metals, useful and especially transportable, because they are always moving; for example, silver hammers, which are used to break up sugar.

Among the jewels made in the Tuareg goldsmith are the beautiful and famous Tuareg crosses, which are also called southern crosses; which have many meanings for this town, but the main thing is that they are made as stars, whose four points are associated with the cardinal points. Because they are a nomadic people that are always ready to mobilize in search of their survival. Currently there are about twenty-two types of these Tuareg goldsmith pieces, and among the most representative we have the following:

Agadés crosses: They are one of the most commercial crosses in the world; and they are used by the Tuareg women of Ayr, which is the capital of Agadés, as decorative ornaments and for their protection.

La Orfebreria Tuareg Collar Cruz de Agades
Photo By: Wikipedia

Zinder crosses: These crosses from the southern part of the Niger are called “tenalit”, which is a term that means “little millet”, because its shape is very similar to that of millet grains.

Iferouane Crosses: They are one of the crosses that are most widespread in the world, and its name means “small inheritance”; and it is associated with all the cultural and historical baggage of this town.

Tahoua crosses: It is also known as zakkat, a term whose meaning is unknown.

Gall crosses: These crosses come from the village of Gall, southwest of Agadés, they associate the term “tanfukque” which means “half way out”, which represents the red tip that comes out of the capsule, as the sun rises, at dawn.

Currently, with the tourism boom, the Tuareg people have kept the traditional models for themselves, while for the general public and tourists who come from all over the world, or those who export, they have had to modify the line. It should be noted that Europe is the largest buyer of these crosses from the Tuareg goldsmith, as well as some Arab countries, for whom they must make them with gold.

La Orfebreria Tuareg Collar

ALFA