Old silver Tanfoukt, Talhakimt bracelets

Tanfoukt, Talhakimt, Khorb, Khatem.......Are just a few vernacular words that designate the same pendant across large patches of the Sahara and the Sahel. This ring-like jewel is a very common adornment among many ethnicities from South morocco in the North to Niger river in the south and from the Atlantic ocean eastwards in the deepest wilderness of central Sahara. It was certainly carried amongst the varied goods of the trans Saharan trade with historical facts testifying for an early import from Cambay in Gujarat, India. Recent times, provenance was from Western European factories, the most famous being Idar oberstein. The enigmatic shape have suggested many an hypothesis to researchers and scholars; the meeting of the opposite genders being the most favoured given the early indian origins of the shape where sexual questions are highly codified (Lingam/Yoni, the triangle/the void ring). Phonecian or even earlier origins may also be suggested, i have personally seen a very similar carnelian ring exhibited at the Luxor museum in South Egypt and labelled as Pharaonic. The use of such pendants was on a very heavy basis, it slowly evolved into incorporating the agate (or other material) pieces into silver jewelry such as pendant, rings or even bracelets. please scroll down to each picture to learn more about this iconic jewel and its use.