Karanphool Jhumka, the Traditional Indian Earring

Indian Jewelry Industry is as old as the tale of human existence. It begun from ornaments made up of bones, wood, stones to now ornaments made up of diamonds, precious and semi-precious stones. Till date there are diamond jewelry shops in Mumbai that have an expertise in designing heritage jewelry collections that drives its designs from the ancient of traditions and cultures.

 Coming to the heritage jewelry collection, Karanphool Jhuma are one of the most traditional jewelry pieces. It’s an ear ornament originally from the region of Rajasthan. The name Karanphool stands for ‘flower in the ear’. It is set with uncut diamonds cabochon rubies and pearls. The weight of the ornament is taken around the ear by two strands of pearls. The projection on the rear of the ornament is for the purpose of attaching it to the hair to neutralize the weight on the ear.

In the trivial times, for a lady to be able to wear more ornaments, the ear was pierced in four places - the lobe, the inner ear, the outer part of the middle of the ear and the top of the ear.
Karanphool with a flower motif in the center of the ornament is the most popular jewel for the ear in the north. At times the Jhumka in the shape of a bell has also been worn separately. It was only through the Mughal period, however, that the Karanphool Jhumka progressed as a single jewel for the ear, each area having its own distinct embellishment added to the basic design.