This is a Minangkabau bangle of embossed red-stained gold ornamented with applied filigree and granulation of gold beads and pearls. The Minangkabau people have a long history of gold mining and trade, and adopted Islamic traditions of filigree and granulation in their jewellery designs. This bangle was worn by women of fine birth or of an elite community. Jewellery has many different functions in island Southeast Asia, for example it was used to indicate social positions, to symbolise the importance of the social relationship between the giver and the receiver during gift exchanges, and to serve as miniature religious objects.
