Antique Vintage Sterling Silver Native Santo Domingo Pueblo Heishi Necklace 7.3g

  
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. Length: 9.18 mm to 10.32 mm. Width : 6.56 mm to 8.85 mm. Color: opaque bright blue hue with a black matrix. Accent Stone: Red branch coral. Length: 7.41 mm to 12.73 mm. Width : 2.35 mm to 3.2 mm. Color: 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: Tumbled and polished turquoise and coral heishi beads.

Sterling silver bead width: 1.3 mm to 3.27 mm. 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, a popular purity of silver at this time. Features a long string adorned with beautiful turquoise and red branch coral beads, as well as sterling silver bench beads. The five turquoise stones and six red branch coral beads were tumbled and polished before being strung on the strand.

The sterling silver bench beads which separate the stones were entirely handmade. Finished with a sterling silver hook and eye clasp for secure wear. There is tarnish in some areas of the sterling silver, giving the item a lovely antique quality. 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. Turquoise is found all over the world and has been a popular semi-precious stone used in jewelry and art for thousands of years by many different cultures; from prehistoric times to the present. Turquoise comes in many beautiful color variations; from the popular bright solid sky-blue hues to dark blue hues with dark spiderwebbing throughout, as well as aqua, teal, and many green varieties, and even some rare white with dark spiderwebbing.

Red Coral is a highly prized stone by Native American cultures and has long been used by artisans in the Southwest. Spanish traders introduced coral to the Navajo, Zuni, Hopi, and other tribes, and it quickly became a sign and symbol of wealth and status in many different Native American cultures. It varies in color from deep red to orange, with red being the preferred choice of Native American jewelry makers.

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: 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
• Metal Purity: .900
• Closure: Hook
• Main Stone: Turquoise
• Metal: Sterling Silver
• Tribal Affiliation: Santo Domingo