Name of Object:

Bridal headdress (Tepelak – tas)

Name in original language:

Nevestinski ukras za glava

Location:

Skopje, North Macedonia

Holding Institution:

Museum of Macedonia

 About Museum of Macedonia, Skopje

Date of Object:

19th century

Inventory Number:

6604

Material(s) / Technique(s):

Gilt silver, casting, filigree, adornment with small coins

Dimensions:

Diameter 16 cm

Provenance:

Mavrovsko Pole

Description:

Jewellery worn on the head included diverse types of metal articles which served to support the hat or scarf and also had an apotropaic function in addition to their decorative one. Especially noteworthy head-pieces were tepelaks. These are headdresses of round form, sometimes slightly concave, abundantly adorned with chains, smaller or larger silver coins and with trepkas (tiny ornaments in diverse forms – round, leaf-shaped, rectangular, heart-shaped, etc.). Tepelaks used to be worn everywhere in Macedonia, particularly in the Kumanovo, Skopje, Gostivar and Gevgelija regions, as well as within Vlachs. This piece of bridal tepelak-tas was made by application of filigree technique. It is abundantly decorated with coins suspended on tiny chains.

Citation of this web page:

Milena Petrovic, ethnologist "Bridal headdress (Tepelak – tas)" in "Sharing History", Museum With No Frontiers, 2025.
https://sharinghistory.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;AWE;mc;3;en

Prepared by: Milena Petrovic, ethnologist
Copyedited by: Daniel de la VegaDaniel de la Vega

Daniel de la Vega is a copy editor based in Portland, Oregon. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in linguistics from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 2014 and has since done editing and localization work on everything from college applications to magazines to video game dialogue.

MWNF Working Number: MC 003