WEARABLE HERITAGE

Socio-cultural aspects

There is al lot more to wearable heritage than only esthetics and protection. In the Asian and African region costume and ornamentation is used to express social and cultural aspects of life. Silver is not only applied to dress in order to beautify the wearer, it is also a way of showing ones personal wealth and social status. But it may for instance also express the marital status of a woman and tell whether or not she has given birth. In the pages that follow a small summary of these aspects is given as well as some (recent) developments like globalization and reflections on identity.