What to Know
With both Euphoria and her wedding to Tom Hiddleston behind her, Zendaya is now focused on promoting The Odyssey, but one of her red carpet looks has earned her a bit of backlash. When the actress showed up at a London photo call for the movie earlier this month, hanging from her ears were jewelry made from real ancient Iranian artifacts, and people are pretty outraged about it, including actual archaeologists.
The earrings are made from gold discs that date back 3,000 years.
According to CNN, the large earrings that Zendaya was wearing in the photos are 3,000 years old and were found in “a treasure hoard discovered in northwestern Iran in the late 1940s” that was called the Ziwiye hoard. They were turned into earrings by jeweler Glenn Spiro, and sold to Barron London.
The earrings are not for sale, so it sounds like they were loaned to Zendaya for the event, and in a statement to CNN, Barron London said that the setting the earrings are in doesn’t damage or alter the artifacts.
“Cultural heritage rightly inspires important conversations, and we welcome informed dialogue about provenance, preservation and the appreciation of exceptional craftsmanship,” said the statement. “At a time when Iran is frequently viewed through the lens of contemporary events, we hope these earrings can also serve as a reminder of the country’s enduring artistic, cultural, and historical legacy.”
Fans and professionals alike believe these discs shouldn’t be used as accessories.
Dr Z the Archaeologist on Instagram shared a video about Zendaya’s earrings, saying that they were “likely looted” before they became jewelry and calling the trend of wearing artifacts “gross.”
Meanwhile, archaeology professor Peter Edwell called the earrings “a huge problem.”
“It’s believed the items Zendaya wore came from quite a problematic hoard that was discovered in Ziwiye in Iran in the late 1940s,” he told The Lighthouse. “It wasn’t excavated. It was plundered and then dispersed out to private and public collections.”
It’s not just the professionals who are turned off by the earrings. “I am an Iranian historian, I don’t like the use of our heritage pieces as jewelry rather than be displayed in museums,” one person wrote in a comment on a TikTok about the situation.
This isn’t the first time Zendaya’s press looks for The Odyssey have caused backlash.
Zendaya’s stylist Law Roach took a private plane to pick up a Schiaparelli dress for her to wear for the London premiere of The Odyssey since it was being debuted on the runway at Paris Haute Couture Week the same day.
After word got out that Law had taken the private jet over a more eco-friendly option, like a train, backlash was swift.
“Private jet for just a dress that she’s probably only going to wear once meanwhile the average citizen is expected to keep their carbon footprint low, conserve energy, recycle, use paper straws, etc. Yeah, eat the rich,” one Instagram commenter wrote.
READ NEXT: Hailey Bieber Dragged Over YSL Swimsuit Campaign ‘Bathroom’ Poses
