Patagonia

This warrior-style necklace is a sculptural fusion of the elegant and rugged with beautifully polished natural agate and shiny silver together with rustic African brass, antiqued silver and exotic etched bone. This powerful necklace has an overall masculine tone and primitive nature, but the simple addition of a few modern components balances this piece of art-to-wear and makes it a timeless classic. This versatile neckpiece can be worn throughout the year and with practically anything. Bold and captivating, it will give strength and a feeling of significance to the wearer.

Brilliant and vivid, the ovals of naturally banded agate are each individually beautiful and unique, ranging in color from white to yellow to orange to red and even some brown and black. Although I can’t be sure of where these particular beads were mined, they most closely resemble condor agate which is mined way up in the Andes Mountains in Patagonia, Argentina. The Andean condor is one of the largest flying birds with an eleven foot wingspan and it lives in the alpine region of the Andes, hence the name condor given to these high mountain agates.

The African woven brass beads are made in a village near Kumasi, Ghana. They are made, one by one, by weaving wax "wires" into a form, investing them in clay, burning out the wax and pouring molten brass into the mold. Each mold is hand made making each bead slightly different from the next. Although these appear to be ancient beads, they are actually newly made in Ghana. The African brass rings at each necklace end are similarly made in the Gongola State of Nigeria or Cameroon. These beads and rings are inexact and have wonderful soul and character.

The Tibetan carved dark brown bone beads are referred to as mala, which is the Sanskrit word for rosary or garland, basically prayer beads. These are most likely carved from ox or yak bone, dyed brown and then carved with primitive looking symbols. The four beads in the necklace that look like amber are actually resin beads that are dyed the amber color. Most resin beads are manufactured by cottage industry in Java Indonesia where the resin is extracted from trees, mixed with dyes, poured into molds and then hand cut, shaped into beads and polished.

All of the silver in this cultural artisan necklace is actually silver-coated terra cotta from Greece. The beads are hand-formed from a unique mix of volcanic terra cotta clays, kiln-fired, kiln-fired a second time with a rough copper coating, heavily coated with 100% pure silver and then antiqued.

The cross is made in the beautiful USA of pewter and hammered and antiqued giving it an ancient appearance and added character. It measures about 2.5" in length. This awesome necklace closes with a lobster clasp and can be adjusted from 22 to 26 inches in length using the attached silver-plated chain.

• Hammered pewter cross pendant
• Long natural banded agate ovals
• African "woven" brass beads
• Amber resin barrels
• Tibetan carved bone prayer beads
• Faux amber resin beads
• Etched and antiqued silver-coated terra cotta beads
• Silver coated antiqued terra cotta
• Silver coated, antiqued ceramic washers
• African antique brass rings
• Giant silver-plated lobster clasp
• Round silver chain