Copyright by Via Snella
The jewelry collection launched by Via Snella encompasses an array of novel creative possibilities while speaking directly to our heart. Lina Zedig, the inspiring force behind the scenes, has brought her experience in textile installation and interior design into a series of jewels that magically bridge the gap between space, matter and the senses. Lina has created a collection of five precious silver pendants in the form of a flask, destined to carry their owner’s favourite perfume. All of these unique unisex pieces are beautifully elaborated by traditional silversmiths in Sri Lanka and are accompanied by a pipette, which becomes essential at the moment of selecting the right scent to fill them up with. Functional and intimate at the same time, they are meant to embody a unique moment of reengagement with the Self through the alchemic fusion of metal and scent.
This is, beyond doubt, a jewelry statement miles away from the snobbish and indulging-in-blings thrill of the fashion industry. Steeped in a philosophy of sustainability and shared experience, it is conceived and materialised to satisfy our penchant for romance, intimate lyricism and casual immanence. With this new venture, Via Snella pays homage to its original quest for charmful singularity and humble luxury, while designing the departure point of its future trajectory. In the seasons to come, the brand will trade it all for knits and more jewellery. Reinventing the classic collection concept, it will opt for a much more sustainable model of production, based on single garments of an exceptional sartorial quality, made to be cosily worn and joyfully shared by special men and women.
VIA SNELLA

VIA Via Snella Launches First Jewelry Collection

Live Growing Jewelry

VIA «Bouquet on a finger»

Nicole Richie | Marie Claire

Ever since a Free People opened in NYC, I've become the overbearing girlfriend and/or crazy ex-girlfriend of the shopping world. Luckily, I'm pretty sure that if I keep spending money every time I go in, I won't have to worry about a restraining order. But, honestly, can you even blame me with accessories like these? I think not.

Cuffed

So, it looks like I'm going to be held hostage at my job for the rest of the week. Now, if only figurative handcuffs looked like this, being chained to my desk would probably suck a little less.

Walking in White

There is really no reason for this other than me just thinking that she looks very pretty all dressed in white. Then again, she is Bambi Girl. It's kinda hard not to look pretty when you have that going for ya. On the bright side, at least I'll never have to buy tissue paper again. Just thinking of all the pennies I'll save in future gift wrapping costs is probably enough to convince myself that I walked away with quite the bargain.

The damage really isn't as bad as it looks though. If you happened to check out the book, you'll know that there is a lot of emphasis on finding 'your esstentials' and the key pieces you want to build your wardrobe around. For me, that translated into finding the right accessories and basics to fill the gaps in my style. (aka me seriously stocking up on layering tees, belts, and light-weight scarves.)

Richie Getting Lucky

Nicole Richie has not come a long way since her days living the simple life. Nicole Richie has become a completely different person. In fact, I wouldn't rule out a brain transplant or brief alien abduction in between all those dramatic confrontations with Paris.

I may not fully understand how or when she went from being famous for no reason to a super-styled, career mom, but as long as she keeps the kimono dresses and costume jewelry coming, I won't question the process.

VIA I'm Kinda Stalking Free People

In the videos that appeared in April, militants can be seen taking sledge hammers to the iconic winged-bulls of Assyria and sawing apart floral reliefs in the palace of Ashurnasirpal II in Nimrud before the entire site is destroyed with explosives. But according to Qais Hussein Rashid, head of Iraq's State Board for Antiquities and Heritage, that was just the final step in a deeper game.

"According to our sources, the Islamic State started days before destroying this site by digging in this area, mainly the palace," he told The Associated Press from his office next to Iraq's National Museum - itself a target of looting after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein. "We think that they first started digging around these areas to get the artifacts, then they started demolishing them as a cover up."

While there is no firm evidence of the amount of money being made by the Islamic State group from looting antiquities, satellite photos and anecdotal evidence confirm widespread plundering of archaeological sites in areas under IS control.

Nimrud was also the site of one of the greatest discoveries in Iraqi history, stunning golden jewelry from a royal tomb found in 1989, and Rashid is worried that more such tombs lie beneath the site and have been plundered. He estimated the potential income from looting to be in the millions of dollars.

Experts speculate that the large pieces are destroyed with sledgehammers and drills for the benefit of the cameras, while the more portable items like figurines, masks and ancient clay cuneiform tablets are smuggled to dealers in Turkey.

On Wednesday, Egypt, together with the Antiquities Coalition and the Washington-based Middle East Institute will be holding a conference in Cairo entitled "Cultural Property Under Threat" to come up with regional solutions to the plundering and sale of antiquities.

This isn't the first time, of course, that Iraq's antiquities have fallen victim to current events. There was the infamous looting of the museum in 2003 and reports of widespread plundering of archaeological sites in the subsequent years, especially in the south. U.S. investigators at the time said al-Qaida was funding its activities with illicit sales of antiquities.

What appears to be different this time is the sheer scale and systematic nature of the looting, especially in the parts of Syria controlled by the Islamic State group. Satellite photos show some sites so riddled with holes they look like a moonscape.

The G-7's Financial Action Task Force said in a February report that the Islamic State group is making money both by selling artifacts directly - as probably would be the case with material taken from the museums - or by taxing criminal gangs that dig at the sites in their territory. After oil sales, extortion and kidnapping, antiquities sales are believed to be one of the group's main sources of funding.

In February, the United Nations passed a resolution recognizing that the Islamic State group was "generating income from the direct or indirect trade," in stolen artifacts, and added a ban on the illicit sale of Syrian antiquities to the already existing one on Iraqi artifacts passed in 2003.

While Iraq contains remains from civilizations dating back more than 5,000 years, the hardest hit artifacts have come from the Assyrian empire, which at its height in 700 B.C. stretched from Iran to the Mediterranean and whose ancient core almost exactly covers the area now controlled by the Islamic State group.

The looted artifacts most likely follow the traditional smuggling routes for all sorts of illicit goods into Turkey, according to Lynda Albertson, head of the Association for Research into Crimes Against Art. From there, the most common route is through Bulgaria and the Balkans into Western Europe. Britain and the United States remain the biggest markets for antiquities, though wealthy collectors are emerging in China and the Gulf - especially for Islamic-era artifacts.

International bans make the ultimate sale of illicit antiquities difficult, but not impossible. So far, there have been no reports of major, museum-quality pieces from IS-held territory appearing in auction houses, so the artifacts must be going to either private collectors or they are being hoarded by dealers to be slowly and discretely released onto the market, said Patty Gerstenblith, Director of the Center for Art, Museum and Cultural Heritage Law at DePaul University.

"I do believe that dealers are willing to warehouse items for a long time and that they may be receiving some `financing' to do this from well-heeled collectors or other dealers operating outside of the Middle East," she said. "It is relatively unlikely that a major piece would be plausibly sold on the open market with a story that it was in a private collection for a long period of time."

Mesopotamian sculptures, jewelry and stelae sold legally have commanded stunning sums, up to $1 million in some cases, but the looters would be selling them to dealers for a fraction of that cost - with the profit margin coming from the sheer number of artifacts being sold.

Iraq has sent lists to the International Council of Museums, the U.N. and Interpol detailing all the artifacts that might have been looted from the museum in Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city overrun by IS last June. Harder to stop, however, is the sale of never-before-seen pieces that have been newly dug up and never registered.

There is new legislation going through the U.S. Congress to tighten controls on illicit trafficking of materials from the Middle East, though Albertson contends that the laws are less important than the manpower devoted to enforcing them.

"A new resolution is just another well-intentioned piece of ineffective paper," she said.

The Iraqi government is now rushing to document the remaining sites in the country, especially in the disputed province of Salahuddin, just south of the Islamic State stronghold in Nineweh province. Nineweh itself is home to 1,700 archaeological sites, all under IS control, said Rashid of the antiquities department.

As a number of experts point out, though, most sites in Iraq have not been completely excavated and there are likely more winged bull statues and stelae waiting to be found under the earthen mounds scattered throughout this country - assuming the Islamic State group and its diggers don't find them first.

Author: Paul Schemm | Source: The Associated Press [May 12, 2015]

"The ongoing destruction of Palmyra's cultural artifacts reflects the brutality and ignorance of extremist groups and their disregard of local communities and the Syrian people," decaled UNESCO chief Irina Bokova, strongly condemning this new assault on Palmyra, a World Heritage Site, particularly funerary busts and the renowned Lion statue of Athena from the entrance of the site's museum.

"The destruction of funerary busts of Palmyra in a public square, in front of crowds and children asked to witness the looting of their heritage is especially perverse,” she said, explaining that the busts embody the values of human empathy, intelligence and honor the dead. They also represent a wealth of information on costumes, jewelry, traditions and history of the Syrian people.

“Their destruction is a new attempt to break the bonds between people and their history, to deprive them of their cultural roots in order to better enslave them, "she declared.

With this in mind, Ms. Bokova reiterated her call to all religious leaders, intellectuals and young people to stand up against the manipulation of religion, to respond to the false arguments of extremists in all media and through the #unite4heritage campaign.

"I commend the courage of the youth from the Arab world who are committed to protecting their heritage as a source of strength, resilience and hope in the future,” she said.

Finally, she called strongly on all UN Member States, the art market and experts to join forces to curb the illicit traffic of cultural property.

“I call on all researchers, artists, filmmakers and photographers to continue to cooperate and join forces with UNESCO to document and share the wealth of the Mesopotamian civilization. Neither bombs nor jackhammers can erase this great culture from the memory of the world,” she declared, adding that nothing can ever stifle human creativity - despite the obstacles and fanaticism, this energy will come back stronger than before, buildings and sites will be rehabilitated, and some will be rebuilt, and culture will find its place because it embodies the vitality of societies.

“UNESCO will continue to work with the people of Syria to make sure that moment comes as soon as possible,” the Director General concluded.

Source: United Nations [July 03, 2015]