Tuareg Tcherot Pendant
$80.00
Gorgeous old Tuareg Tcherot. Silver and leather. A collectable piece in excellent condition for its age. Mauritania or Niger, ca 1950
weighs 53 grams
measures 9.5cm L x 7cm W
In the Tuareg language (Tamahaq), the literal sense of the word “Tcherot” means “letter”, “message” or “paper on which something is written”. The word Tcherot is used in Niger, while these talismans are called “Taraout” in Algeria, “Takardé” in Mali and “Kitab” in Mauritania.
Tcherot or Kitab typically contain small objects with amulet properties and carefully folded magical formulas as well as verses from the Koran, all designed to protect and strengthen the wearer or to ensure her fertility. A Tuareg girl receives her first Tcherot from her mother at the age of seventeen. (Credits: “African Beads, Jewels of a Continent” by Evelyn Simak).
1 in stock
