Navajo Made Five Strand Coral Bead Necklace

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Navajo Made Five Strand Coral Bead Necklace

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Sold Date: 06/07/2007
Channel: Online Auction
Source: eBay
Category: Ethnic, Folk & Native American Art

For thousands of years, the Native Nations of North, Central and South America have traded valued art materials: gemstones, shells, feathers, obsidian, etc., as well as finished items of craftwork. The unique contribution of the Anasazis ("Old Enemy," in Navajo) whose civilivation centered in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico was tur quoise, which they mined and which their priesthood controlled. Anasazi turquoise was traded for other materials such as precipuis metals and exotic feathers throughout the Americas.
The Chaco culture peaked in the 1200s and then disappeared. (Why is still a great question.) It is thought the today's Pueblo tribes are their descendants. Turquoise became the emblematic substance of value of the Navajo, who, essentially, came to occupy Chaco territory, and the Navajo, in turn, traded turquoise. One item involved in some of these swaps was coral.
At the Gallup Campus off The University of New Mexico, @ 75% of the students are Navajp. One day, when I was teaching composition t, a student came into class with this coral necklace. Would I be interested? Oh, yes! As you see, the necklace is simply five doubled strands of naturally, uniqule and irregularly shaped coral beads hung on strong, brown waxed thread. It really has some "heft" to it (@ 4 oz.), and the double strands are @ 12" long. T is @ 3 1/2" (double) of plain string at top.
In a sense, while Navajo-made, this coral necklace evokes visions of Hawaii or Polynesia! You might want to, and certainly could, re-string the beads more "fashionably," though, personally, I think its simple beauty is wondrous!