Valued for their iridescent blue-green-purple color, the wing casings, or elytra, of the Buprestidae Jewel Beetle have been used for centuries to adorn clothing and jewelry in India, among both indigenous groups like the Naga, as well as in Mughal court costume. In the 19th century an export trade developed around Calcutta, where gossamer-fine cotton muslins were embroidered with gold threads and beetle wing “sequins,” bringing a taste of the exotic to fashionable European ladies.
Tombstone
- Panel and fragments, India, 19th century, cotton, beetle elytra, metal foil, Gift of Sarah Cooper Hewitt, 1931-25-1-a/d
Collection Record
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