Antique Vintage Brass Native Santo Domingo Pueblo Inlay Heishi Necklace 63.8g

  
We have similar Native and Pueblo Santo Domingo items, which would pair nicely with this piece, for sale this week. Listing Description by: Angela A. Age Circa: Antique Native Pueblo Santo Domingo C. Markings: Unmarked, tested, and guaranteed.

Country of Origin: United States, Pueblo Nation. Gram Weight: 63.8 grams. Metal Type: Brass barrel clasp, brass heishi beads, brass scalloped beads, brass inlay channels.

Material: Wire, faux resin claw. Length: 4.08 mm to 56.93 mm.

Width: 9.17 mm to 22.85 mm. Color: opaque deep green hue with mottled tan and black hues; opaque tan hue with mottled beige, brown, and black hues; opaque brown-gray hue with lighter grey hues; opaque green hue with darker green hues throughout; opaque gray hue with an orange striation and mottled lighter grey and tan hues. Accent Stone: Shell heishi beads, red coral inlay, quartz inlay, onyx inlay.

Shell heishi beads: 2.81 mm to 9.61 mm long, 2.12 mm to 4.57 mm wide, opaque deep brown and lighter brown hues. Red coral inlay: 4.06 mm long, 2.89 mm wide, opaque red hue with mottled darker red and black hues.

Quartz inlay: 4.08 mm long, 5.66 mm wide, semi-translucent lighter and darker grey hues. Onyx inlay: 4.34 mm to 9.74 mm long, 0.68 mm to 0.97 mm wide, opaque black hue. Stone Treatment: The stone(s) appear to be untreated, but we are not certified gemologists. Stone(s) have been tested and guaranteed using a professional Presidium Duo refractive, heat, and hardness tester. Stone Cuts: Carved and polished heishi shell beads, inlay jasper, quartz, onyx, and red coral stones. Width: 0.11" to 0.39".

Pendant measurements: 2.24" length, 0.89" width. Faux resin claw measurements: 1.81" length, 0.35" width.

Link Type: Beads on wire. Handmade by a talented Pueblo artisan located in Santa Domingo Pueblo (now Kewa Pubelo), New Mexico, in the 1950s. Features a long wire adorned with a multitude of shell heishi beads, as well as thin and scalloped brass heishi beads. Each shell bead was expertly hand-carved and drilled through the center. Contains a large pendant with beautiful inlaid jasper, red coral, quartz, and onyx stones, as well as brass channels.

Showcases two faux resin claws dangling on each side of the pendant. Finished with a barrel clasp for secure wear. There is a small chip to the end of the pendant, as well as a tiny crack in the stone's surface which does not affect wear. This listing is for the item only. This beautiful piece was made by a very talented Native American silversmith.

It features handcrafted silversmith work throughout. Antique Native American jewelry is very rare to find. This is due to these pieces being made for reservation and personal use before the tourist trade became popular.

Very few pieces were made and even less survived to today. Kewa Pueblo, formerly known as Santo Domingo Pueblo, is located on the Rio Grande and is particularly known for Native Pueblo artists who create heishi necklaces made of bone, shell and turquoise beads, some of which are so finely cut that they almost look like strands of hair. These beautiful and colorful necklaces are also sometimes incorrectly identified as "Depression Jewelry", however their origin certainly predates the Great Depression, and they are still being made today by Kewa artists.

Pueblo artisans are also quite famous for their inlaid mosaic-like pieces. The concept of Pawn, Old Pawn, and Dead Pawn Native American Jewelry came to be in the 1800s. When a loan wasn't repaid, the item became known as either "Old Pawn" or Dead Pawn. Heishi, or Heishe (pronounced "hee shee"), are tiny beads that are disc-, tube-, and even sometimes square-shaped, originally made from shell that has been ground and drilled. In modern times, Heishi has come to mean any tiny hand-made beads of any natural material.

Modern Heishi pieces include stone, wood, bone, nuts, eggs, and metal. The oldest examples of Heishi date back to around 6000 BCE, to the Pueblo Native Americans, and is the oldest form of jewelry in New Mexico.

The word Heishi means "shell" and ancient Pueblo artisans used many kinds of seashells that they obtained through trade with tribes in the Gulf of California; including spiny oysters, mother-of-pearl, and melon shell. Channel inlay is like other inlay styles, but unique in that there are strips of metal (channels) used to separate and hold the stones in place. Often, channels are set first and then the stones are cut precisely to fit into each segment. This traditional Native American style is rare, but when used, it allows for very intricate and colorful designs. A form of chalcedony, jasper is an opaque mineral of virtually any color.

Jasper is often observed with patterns that occur during the mineral's formation. Certain forms of jasper such as the pale green variety have been popular since the ancient period; the Minoans on Crete favored green jasper for their seals, but green jasper was also popular among the Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, and Hebrews of antiquity. Hailed as a significant gemstone among the ancients, it was also used to produce objects larger than jewelry such as vases and other vessels. This item is in the category "Jewelry & Watches\Ethnic, Regional & Tribal\Necklaces & Pendants". The seller is "abeautifultimeco" and is located in this country: US. This item can be shipped worldwide.

• Department: Womens
• Brand: Unbranded
• Metal: Brass
• Main Stone: Jasper
• Material: Wire, Resin
• Modified Item: No
• Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
• Jewelry Type: Necklaces
• Country of Origin: United States, Pueblo Nation
• Tribal Affiliation: Santo Domingo
• Featured Refinements: Heishi Necklace
• Ethnic Origin: Santo Domingo
• Accent Stones: Shell, Red Coral, Quartz, Onyx
• Ethnic & Regional Style: Native American
• Type: Necklace
• Style: Beaded