Silver Pragueam Jarl Takao necklace in the pattern of combined Ranghok flower

Group of arts and crafts Type of Handicraft

Silver Pragueam Jarl Takao necklace in the pattern of combined Ranghok flower is created out of the model of ancient silverware: Pragueam, Jarl and Takao. Each jewelry with different use is harmoniously combined into a single necklace: Pragueam and Jarl as necklace whereas Takao as pendant.

Necklace :  Round shape Pragueam (Bead) is in the pattern of lotus flower petal: 5 beads for each set; 6 sets in total. While Jarn (Takrud) is also in the pattern of lotus flower petal: 7 pieces in total. Both Pragueam and Jarl are stringed alternately with a twined red rope, believed to be a holy amulet.

Pendant : Takao in the pattern of Ranghok flower. Takao is typically tiny (maximum 2 diameter centimeter), used as the earrings. Kru Somsak, however, enlarges Takao size into 6 diameter centimeters to be a pendant for a necklace. The ancient Ranghok flower pattern is selectively used, representing the flower of friendship. Wearing an ornament in the pattern of Rang Hok flower is believed to help enhance positive energy, recognition and fairness.

Pragueam is a Khmer word, meaning Pakam or silver or gold bead used as ornaments.  Surin province ‘s Pragueam is distinctively various in designs and patterns. It is made of thin silver sheets forged into different shapes, pressed with resin, enabling it easy to engrave.

It is available from the smallest diameter about half a centimeter, up to a large size of about 2.5 - 3 centimeters. There are many patterns, such as silver bags, pillows, octagonal, hexagonal, cones, pimps, buttons, jars, carambola, Taphon, pumpkins, Jarl (Takrud). Most patterns are inspired by surrounding natural environment such as check pattern, lotus petal pattern, Pikul flower pattern, Jan flower pattern, sun pattern Sunflower pattern, frog eye pattern, etc.

Jarl is a Khmer word, meaning silverware or goldware in the jointed shape. In other words, it means Takrud, a holy amulet believed to protect the owner against bad fortune.

Takao is a Khmer word, meaning earrings as silver or gold ornaments. Its floral pattern is made from the wires bended back and forth equivalently into shapes, then assembled as several layers of circle as a flower, consisting of petals and pollens.

Types :
Metalware
Culture :
Ancient Khmer
Dimension :
Necklace - 50 centimeters long, Pendant - 6 diameter centimeters
Medium :
1. Silver metal 2. Resin 3. Silver soldering paste 4. Benzine Gasoline 5. Diluted acid 6. Tapioca pearl solution or dishwasher liquid 7. Red rope
Date :
2563
Information

Technique : Forging, rolling, coiling, bending, welding and engraving silver metal
Making process (in detail) :

  1. Workpiece design by defining the shape of the workpiece as planned. For this workpiece, round shape and Jarl shape (jointed shape or Takrud) are required to string into the necklace with Takao pendant in the pattern of Ranghok flower.
  2. Melting silver metal Measure silver metal to the desired weight. Then Forge silver metal in the mold until it is melted. Pour into a socket plate or rail to get a silver bar. Set aside to cool down.
  3. Rolling silver bar Roll silver bar and reduce to extremely thin sheets, or to wires at the desired size.
  4. Forging the workpiece with air bellow and blowtorch. Then coil, bend, and assemble the silver sheets or wires with silver soldering paste following these processes:
    1) Necklace (Pragueam and Jarl)
    - Cut the silver plate into the desired Pragueam size. For round shape Pragueam, cut the sheets to the length of bead sizes. While for Jarl, cut the sheets to the length of jointed size then roll with Lao Mai pai (bamboo tube) into cylindrical shape.
    - To make round shape Pragueam, place the cylindrical silver plate on the wood stand and forge from both tips to the middle with buffalo horn hammer under constant heat, and trim. Finally various sizes of round shape Pragueam are completed. (5 beads for each necklace; 6 sets in total. / 1 bead for each necklace tip; 2 sets in total. And 2 beads for a pendant tip.)
    - To make cylindrical shape Jarl, forge silver plate into 6 pieces of long cylindrical tube as silver string. And forge silver plate into 2 pieces of slender joint as necklace tip, and 1 for pendant tip.
    - Decorate Pragueam and Jarl by rolling tiny silver wires into miniature circles and place on 2 sides of Pragueam beads.
    - Heat resin and shove into the hole of Pragueam and Jarl. Press resin firmly and set aside to cool down.
    - Engrave Pragueam and Jarl into the pattern of lotus flower with engraving kit.
    - Punch a hole into Pragueam and Jarn with smaller size of heated metal kit.
    - Assemble silver joint for pendant at the middle of necklace.
    2) Pendant (Takao in the pattern of Ranghok flower)
    - Bend silver wires back and forth into 47 sets of serration-shape flower petals with pliers. Then assemble as circle to become a 6-centimeter diameter flower bud. Adjust and space the pattern equivalently.
    - Press another silver plate with Toottu into round shape silver plate, of which diameter size is slightly smaller than the bud size. And assemble to the bended silver wires as flower stem.
    - Roll thin silver wires into 5 spiral wires – left and right spirals alternately. Then bend 2 wires into circle, 1-2 millimeter smaller than Takao and assemble onto the bud.
    - Roll silver wire into a circle and assemble to the next layer.
    - Create Dokprik pattern by rolling tiny silver wires into worm shape. Then assemble 15 pieces at the next layer.
    - Roll silver wire into a circle and assemble onto Dokprik pattern at the next layer.
    - Create spiral pattern by melting silver wires and roll them with brass wires into worm shape. Remove them from brass wires and assemble into spiral pattern with circle wires at the next layer.
    - Create spiral pattern and assemble with 4 sets of circle wires at the next layer.
    - Decorate with Kaipla pattern by attaching 3 tiny and thin Kaipla droplets, on each tip of 47 petals.
    - Decorate with Kaipla pattern on Dokprik pattern by placing bigger size of thin Kaipla droplet onto 15 sets of Dokprik pattern and onto the center of Takao bud.
  5. Cleaning workpiece
  1. Hot melt the workpiece to remove the rust with fire from welding torch. The silver metal typically turns naturally soft white when melted.
  2. Soak the workpiece in diluted acid to whiten it.
  3. Wash and brush the workpiece with tapioca pearl solution or dishwasher liquid until it beautifully shines.
  4. Wipe and blow dry the workpiece.
  1. Assembling workpiece
  1. String Pragueam and Jarl beads with a twined red rope and assemble silver joint for hanging the pendant.
    2)  Assemble the pendant tip of Pragueam and Jarl with the Takao pendant

* Dok Prik (Chili flower pattern) As a worm shape of silver wire, it is made by melting the silver wire until softened and spin the wires into circles as a worm shape with a brass tube. Remove from the tube and re-spin into the “worm” shape. Cut it into circle and stitch its ends firmly. Each circle is called “Dok Prik”.
* **Kon Hoi (Spiral pattern)** It looks similar to Dokprik pattern yet bigger in size. It is made by rolling the silver plate into thin wires and manage as the circumference. Melt the other silver wire until softened and spin the wires into circles as a worm shape with a brass tube. Remove from the tube and attach the curled wires to fit the length with the prepared circumference into the desired layer.
* **Kai Pla (spawn pattern)** As a round shape of silver droplet, it is made by rolling tiny wires with brass wires per the desired size and cut them into circle. Then forge them until they become the round silver droplet. The wood stand as forging station is made of smoothened and charcoaled bamboo, with a circle wire on its surface. Bamboo web perfectly helps hold the round silver beads from running next to each other when being forged.

References