When we think of authentic Native American jewelry, the first thing that comes to mind are those highly popular pieces made with Turquoise stones and silver, coral and other natural materials. Native American culture is very rich in this respect, as jewelry played an important part in the life of tribes. It was used to communicate such things as social status, individual identity and other important community events.
If you’ll buy an authentic Native American jewelry piece, you’ll see that you’ll find some symbols stamped or engraved on the surface of the jewelry. Why are these hallmarks there? And what do they do? Indigenous people in America formed different clans: Hopi, Pueblo, Navajo etc., and each clan had distinctive features, a different tradition and different culture in general. When they made jewels, blacksmiths introduced specific symbols to differentiate their handcraft from that of the other tribes. This is why certainauthentic Native American jewelry has symbols of animals and other things from nature stamped on the surface of the jewelry. Today, this practice is used not only to identify the clan to whom a person belongs, but also for determining the value or quality of the materials used in making the jewelry. International laws state that jewelry creators have the obligation of marking those pieces which are made with silver, gold, or other precious metals. For instance, sterling silver is always marked, so if you see a 925 sign stamped on authentic Native American jewelry, you will instantly know that it symbolizes the value of the jewelry: the silver has a purity of 92.5%.
Native American culture puts lots of emphasis on man’s handcrafts: each of the jewelries artists create has a rich heritage. Each tribe we mentioned had a different way of combining metals and materials to create jewelry. Navajo, which is the most known style of Indian jewelry on an international level, uses mainly turquoise stones. In general, the indigenous people established on the Great Planes were well-known for their beadworks, whereas clans in the Northeast Woodlands produced mainly barrel-shaped jewelry. And, in fact, each tribe had a certain expertise, so we can say that all of the jewelry created by Indian artists is valuable. Natural gemstones and materials such as bone, wood, plant fibers or shells are preferred for jewels. Besides the typical necklaces, earrings, bracelets, rings or pins, artists also produce traditional jewelry, including kethons (designed for arm protection), wampum (those lovely shell-beads one can wear around the neck) or piercing jewelries like labrets.
Native American cultureis still alive thanks to artists who do all in their power to create authentic Native American jewelry using traditional methods. Native American culture has survived because of its ability to adapt, to accept new forms, but it still needs to be protected against those who use its forms for profit. We should do more to preserve this wonderful culture. We can do this by supporting Indian artists’ work and buying authentic jewelry.
Indian artists sell authentic Native American jewelry https://tskies.com/buying-authentic-native-american-jewelry/ at accessible prices. Purchasing items from these craftsmen is a great way to support Native American culture https://tskies.com/about-us/ .