Steep stairs rising to the Afrasiab rampart begin to the north of the said aiwan mosque. Westward of…
Spinels were the most highly prized stone in the Baburid treasury, assessed according to their size, lustre, transparency and the beaut y of their deep rose-red colour.
Also known as ‘Balas rubies’, and often confused with that stone, the best spinels have greater clarity than rubies and are easier to engrave. The most valuable spinels came from Badakhshan, Afghanistan. They were usually worn as beads rather than as faceted gems.
Today, the necklace is kept in the Museum of Islamic Art Malaysia displayed here is adorned with seven 17th-century spinel beads, restrung at the later date with an intertwined double string of pearls. There is an emerald drop suspended below. Each spinel has a Baburid title engraved on it in Persian and numbered from left to right.
