images courtesy: Birdhichand Ghanshyamdas Jewellers
Alchemy
is put into ovens at temperature just below the melting point of gold. This makes the meena stick to the gold molecules and acquire a glazing on the surface. It is generally believed that the better the purity of the base metal, the better is the shine and sharpness of the meena colours. The colours that are mainly used are bright shades such as red, green and blue with inlays of gold, cream and white. However, nowadays, fast colours such as pink, turquoise and black are also used. After meenakari, the jewellery pieces are polished and given for jadai or setting of precious and semi-precious gemstones such as diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires and tourmalines. The VKDSLQJ DQG Âż[LQJ RI VWRQHV LV IROORZHG E\ PDNLQJ ÂżOOLQJ DQG VWXGGLQJ RI kundan whereby hyperSXULÂżHG JROG OHDI IRLO LV LQVHUWHG EHWZHHQ WKH ZDOOV of the stones. The gold foils placed below the VWRQHV HQDEOHG JUHDWHU UHĂ€HFWLRQ RI OLJKW WKURXJK the stone, thus increasing its intensity DQG EULOOLDQFH ,Q WKH ÂżQDO SKDVH WKH MHZHOOHU\ pieces are assembled, tied with pearls or beads or gemstones. Kundan meenakari is also popularly known as Jaipuri jewellery since the Rajasthani city of Jaipur has traditionally been the centre for kundan MHZHOOHU\ LQ ,QGLD 7KH FLW\ LV DOVR KRPH WR OX[XU\ jewellery brand Birdhichand Ghanshyamdas Jewellers, a pioneer in the celebrated style of kundan meenakari. Birdhichand is not just a
68 I Gems & Jewellery Times I October 2014
name but a legend that was patronised by the royals of Rajasthan. Inspired by the plethora of motifs, the shower of colours, the timeless art DQG WKH ZDUPWK RI WUDGLWLRQ WKDW GHÂżQHV Rajashthan, the jewellery house has innovated with kundan meenakari in numerous ways, H[SHULPHQWLQJ ZLWK FRORXUHG GLDPRQGV DQG polki and rendering meenakari into each one of its H[TXLVLWH FROOHFWLRQV Kundan meenakari LV H[TXLVLWH DUW EXW howsoever beautiful it appears to be, there are certain aspects that one needs to keep in mind before buying kundan meena. In trying to differentiate between an old and a new meenakari piece, it should be remembered that the older the piece, the more intricate the design and the brighter the colour. Imperfections in a diamond FDQ EH LGHQWLÂżHG E\ WLQ\ UHQWV RU ÂżVVXUHV DQG specks. Also, real diamonds can never have scratches on the surface. Genuine kundan-set crystal has a mellow, RSDTXH DSSHDUDQFH $UWLÂżFLDO kundan-set crystal is transparent and glitters. This is due to the fact that glass is used instead of crystal and coloured tinfoil is used under the stones to create the illusion of colour. Real kundan meenakari jewellery must be placed between layers of cotton wool, sealed in a top-quality plastic bag and always wiped with a suede cloth to restore shine. ƒ
ABOVE:A bajuband crafted in yellow gold ZLWK WH[WXUHG PHWDO bars and a centre motif set in blue enamel with full-cut diamonds, emeralds and a big emerald drop.