A pair of fibulae, like this, attached with a chain, were worn by Berber and Jewish women in Algeria and Morocco and are just one element of a fashionable style of dress where jewelry was plentiful. Worn on the front of the body, at the shoulder, this functional ornament secures a cloak or scarf to another garment and the chain assures it won’t slip off. A woman’s jewelry was an important part of dowry. Silver was the main currently as part of the marriage agreement, men gave women jewelry, which belonged to the bride after the wedding. Portable wealth, this jewelry offers financial protection. In much of North Africa, these items were generally made by Jewish artisans, whose traditional centuries-old occupation was silversmithing and jewelry making.

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