Chains, linked beads, and scrolling ornament suggest growth through repetition and, by extension, life and prosperity. In India, links and chains have inspired a great deal of ingenuity. Here, for instance, the individual coiled discs on a silver bracelet are not visibly attached yet form a flexible ring. The tongues and loops on a gold chain necklace from Tamil Nadu also seem to hang together organically. Their joints invisible, they resemble a snake’s skin or a fish’s scales.

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