For this reason, reference books are indispensable tools for professionals working with Armenian jewelry, antique jewels, liturgical objects, Ottoman palace treasures, and historical goldsmithing traditions. A skilled appraiser must be able to read not only the jewel itself, but also the world that produced it.
One of the most important reference works in this field is Arsen Yarman’s comprehensive two-volume book Jewelry and Armenian Goldsmiths under the Ottomans. The work examines Armenian goldsmiths, jewelers, sarrafs, precious-stone dealers, artisan families, workshops, seals, signatures, drawings, archival documents, and surviving objects within the Ottoman world in a holistic way. With approximately 2,000 names of goldsmiths, more than 750 archival documents, 1,200 images, and 300 drawings, the book offers a unique comparative archive for Armenian jewelry appraisal professionals.
One of the greatest challenges in Armenian jewelry appraisal is attribution. Many works made by Ottoman and Armenian masters are unsigned. In some cases, the absence of marks may be related to court conventions, tax concerns, or the social status of the person who commissioned the object. Jewelry and Armenian Goldsmiths under the Ottomans provides a strong documentary foundation for addressing this challenge through seals, signatures, commission records, probate inventories, workshop drawings, and family photographs.
The book discusses in detail subjects such as the Duzian family, the Grand Bazaar, the Imperial Mint, palace commissions, aigrettes, jeweled boxes, orders, medals, liturgical objects, gem-set weapons, and the precious-stone trade. In this respect, it is an essential guide not only for understanding Armenian goldsmithing, but also for appraisal professionals seeking to understand the multilayered relationships that Ottoman jewelry culture established with Europe, Iran, India, and Russia.
Armenian jewelry appraisal experts must pay attention not only to technical characteristics, but also to cultural context. An aigrette, a sword hilt, a half-crown, a church object, or a medal is not merely an aesthetic object. It may also carry power, faith, diplomacy, family memory, and craft knowledge. Arsen Yarman’s work connects these objects with historical documents, transforming them from silent works of art into historical witnesses.
In 2026, the strongest Armenian jewelry appraisal professionals will be those who combine gemological knowledge with archival sensitivity. They will not limit themselves to asking, “What is this stone?” or “What is the market value of this object?” They will also seek answers to deeper questions: “Who made this object?”, “For whom was it produced?”, “Which workshop tradition does it reflect?”, and “Which Ottoman, Armenian, Persian, Russian, or European influences does it carry?”
In this sense, Jewelry and Armenian Goldsmiths under the Ottomans is not a passive reference book, but an active research tool that strengthens the professional appraisal process. It transforms an object from a merely decorative piece into a historical witness. For anyone who wishes to work seriously in the field of Armenian jewelry appraisal, this work should be one of the cornerstones of a strong professional library.