Tribal Lion Claw pendant. old Silver, totally hand-worked. The above Tribal Lion Claw pendant is from the Udaipur region of Rajasthan; this pendant type is not often seen outside Rajasthan. The design is a schematic representation in Silver of an ancient Rajput type of pendant consisting of two lion claws embedded in the sides of a centre piece, the two curved claws spread upwards in a handlebar moustache effect. The design signifies great bravery, courage, the fabled aptitudes of the lion.
Rajputs consisted of numerous interlinked clans, spread across a lot of North India, bound together by a shared sense of warrior-hood. The term Rajput, over centuries, came to refer to the ruling warrior class of north-west India, in particular of Rajasthan, and the lion was the symbol of the bravery and fighting qualities that defended that way of life.
Every Rajput redoubt has in its treasure chests a number of old examples of the Lion Claw pendant with two old lion claws and a central section of ornately worked Gold embedded with precious gemstones. The above schematic representation in Silver was created for the less exalted male members of the Rajput world, just as willing as their leaders to fight to the very bitterest of ends.