Antique Vintage Sterling Silver Native Santo Domingo Pueblo Bird Necklace 17.2g

  

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. Markings: Unmarked, tested, and guaranteed.

Main Stone: Mother of pearl bird fetishes. Length: 18.79 mm to 20.38 mm. Width : 6.01 mm to 7.3 mm. Accent Stone: Shell, red coral. Shell: 2.68 mm to 2.88 mm diameter, 0.89 mm to 2.22 mm depth, semi-translucent lighter and darker brown hues.

Red coral : 7.83 mm length, 4.26 mm depth, opaque bright red 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: Polished mother of pearl bird carvings, carved and polished shell and red coral heishi beads. Handmade by a talented Pueblo artisan located in Santa Domingo Pueblo (now Kewa Pubelo), New Mexico, in the 1950s.

900 sterling silver, also known as coin silver. Features a woven string adorned with a multitude of beautiful mother of pearl, shell, and red coral stones. Each mother of pearl stone was carved by hand into the motif of a bird. These birds are separated by many hand-carved round shell heishi beads, as well as one red coral stone. Finished with a hook and eye clasp for secure wear. There is minor wear to some shell beads, which does not affect wear. Several of the bird fetishes could use a gentle cleaning. The price has been reduced to reflect this.

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.

Mother of Pearl is a beautiful type of organic mollusk shell lining that is made up of nacre, the same substance that coats pearls. It is a strong, iridescent material that is well suited to decorative arts, and has been used in art, jewelry and even architecture for thousands of years. Mother of Pearl is highly prized for its distinct, multi-colored pearlescent glow. Spiny Oyster is a beautiful natural stone that has a gorgeous light red to pink hue and is often substituted for natural coral in Native American jewelry. Spiny oysters are not true oysters but are more closely related to scallops. They are found primarily in the warm waters of the Sea of Cortez off the coast of Baja California. 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.

• Country of Origin: United States, Kewa Pueblo Nation
• Chain Type: Beads on string
• Modified Item: No
• Jewelry Type: Necklaces
• Featured Refinements: Heishi Necklace
• Ethnic Origin: Santo Domingo (Kewa Pueblo)
• Type: Necklace
• Secondary Stone: Shell, Red Coral
• Brand: Unbranded
• Era: Vintage Kewa Pueblo c. 1950
• Ethnic & Regional Style: Native American
• Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
• Style: Beaded
• Material: String
• Theme: Birds
• Metal Purity: .900
• Closure: Hook
• Main Stone: Mother of Pearl
• Metal: Sterling Silver
• Tribal Affiliation: Santo Domingo