Handmade in North Africa

Moroccan - Ethnic Amazigh

Antique coins 114 years old

Two available

Indigenous silver - probably 70% - 80% 

Please note - this is not 92.5 silver.  These are historic pieces that were not trying to conform to international standards of metal purity. They were for local use.

Weight - 1.8 ounces each

Interior ring diameter - 1.25 inch

Stick length - 2 inches

Total brooch length - 4.5 inches

Width - 1.25 inches

This pair of silver coin brooches was made from a full Moroccan Rial denomination coin.  The coins were minted in the Muslim year 1331. It's currently 1445.  

Amazigh jewelry often uses coins. Women literally wore their wealth. In addition to these coin brooches, women wore necklaces with coins ornaments and headdresses adorned with coins.

The wire for this pin is robust and shows wear in particular places, indicating how a long-term owner must have positioned it on a daily basis. The stick and wires are very robust, making it feasible to use these pins with weights up to super bulky.  The pins are pretty heavy so will likely not be suitable for very fine fabrics of fingering weight yarn unless the styling is well-supported and the pins are used with multiple layers.

The ring on the bottom of the pin can accept a fairly thick chain or cord, allowing the pin to be worn as a pendant. The ring would have connected to a necklace strung between two brooches, which would have been worn at the front of each shoulder.