Hollywood star Zendaya sparks controversy by wearing gold earrings

Hollywood star Zendaya has always been known for her bold and unique fashion choices. However, she has recently appeared in public wearing an ornament that has sparked intense debate not only among fashion enthusiasts but also among historians, archaeologists, and social media users. This is because a pair of earrings made from ancient Iranian gold foil, dating back nearly three thousand years, adorned her ears.

Zendaya recently attended a promotional event in London for director Christopher Nolan's new film 'The Odyssey'. At the event, she wore a custom white halter-neck gown by Jacquemus, featuring a long veil design. On her feet were white pump shoes by Christian Louboutin. However, the historical earrings in her ears caught more attention than her attire, reports NDTV.

It is known that this ornament, sourced from the collection of the London-based Mayfair antique jewelry firm Baroni London, uses pure gold foil found in the ancient Ziwiye region of Iran. According to historians, these gold foils date back to around 1000 BC, making them approximately three thousand years old. To preserve and modernly utilize these ancient artifacts, the earrings were crafted into a new design using 18-karat yellow gold and diamonds. Each gold foil is engraved with a sun symbol radiating light, recognized as one of the most significant religious and cultural symbols of the ancient Near East.

According to historians, this sun sign was used in Assyrian civilization as a symbol of Shamash, the god of justice, divine power, and protection. Consequently, it is considered not just an ornament but an important cultural artifact of ancient civilization.

Filmmaker and journalist Shabnam Nasimi provided a detailed explanation of the history of this ornament on social media. She stated that long before the construction of temples in classical Greece, this sun symbol was widely used in gold ornaments within the culture of the nomadic Scythians of the ancient Iranian plateau and steppe region. In 1947, a massive cache of gold artifacts was discovered inside a bronze coffin near Ziwiye village, close to the city of Saqqez in the Kurdistan region of Iran. However, since archaeologists were not present at the site at that time, local people broke them apart and sold them to various collectors.

Later, in 1948, when French archaeologist André Godard exhibited a portion of these relics in Paris, the international importance of the Ziwiye gold came into discussion. Afterward, archaeologist Roman Ghirshman prepared a list of more than 600 antiquities found from Ziwiye. Currently, various parts of these historical gold relics are preserved in world-renowned museums and private collections. These include the British Museum, the Louvre, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the National Museum of Iran.

However, not everyone views Zendaya's unique fashion choice positively. On social media, many have questioned the morality of using thousands-of-years-old archaeological relics as fashion accessories.

According to Jirair Ali, a London-based author and expert in Islamic history and art, a segment of Western celebrities is still not sensitive enough toward the history and cultural heritage of the Global South. In his words, while decorating oneself with artifacts from museums or private collections may seem harmless to many, in reality, it can be seen as an expression of symbolic ownership and dominance over another culture's heritage.

Of course, neither Zendaya nor her styling team has commented on this controversy so far. Notably, Zendaya will be seen in the role of the goddess Athena in Christopher Nolan's highly anticipated film 'The Odyssey', which is set to release worldwide on July 17. Amidst the promotion of the film, her unique ornament has created widespread international discussion regarding the relationship between history, archaeology, and fashion.