Korean Norigae

Norigae (노리개) are among the finest expressions of Korean decorative craft and feminine auspicious tradition — elaborate hanging pendants worn attached to the otgoreum (collar knot) or the jeogori (jacket) of a hanbok, dangling with layered tassels, precious stones, carved jade, silver metalwork, and miniature symbolic objects. More than jewelry, norigae are wearable blessing systems: each component chosen from a vocabulary of auspicious symbols accumulated over centuries of Korean material culture, assembled into a composite statement about the wearer's wishes for her life.

The most prestigious norigae are three-part (samsak norigae), with three pendant elements hanging from a central knot, each containing different symbols. Common symbolic elements include: the biteok (jade bat) for wealth and happiness; the sujungnori (water crystal) for clarity and truth; carved peaches for longevity; butterflies for marital happiness and the transformation of love; the samjogo three-legged crow for success; pomegranates for fertility; and the tongsohyang (hollow cylinder with Buddhist swastika pattern) for all-encompassing good fortune. The Korean knot (maedeup) holding the elements together carries the same 'endless continuity' symbolism as Chinese knotwork.

Historically, norigae were status objects restricted to yangban (aristocratic) women, with different materials signaling rank. Gold and jade indicated the highest nobility; silver the upper gentry; bronze and horn the lower classes. Common women's norigae were functional as well as symbolic, incorporating small knives, perfume containers, and needle cases. Today, norigae are worn by brides at traditional Korean weddings and by performers of traditional dance, and smaller modern versions are popular as fashion accessories and gifts expressing the full weight of Korean feminine luck symbolism.