Native American jewelry, a wonderful gift for your dear ones

Posted by AllmaJess on December 19th, 2014

Winter celebrations are closing near, so this is the time to start thinking about what presents you can offer your loved ones. They deserve something beautiful, something original and unique that no one else has. How about Turquoise jewelry? This type of jewelry is very popular right now; you can buy authentic items directly from Indian artists.

Native American jewelry has a very long history. The first tribes in America used all sorts of organic materials and stones to create adornments. These people strongly believed in the connection between man and nature, between man and the earth. This philosophy constitutes the core of Indian culture and is applied in every aspect of daily life, including jewelry making. This is why jewelry masters don’t work with mass-produced materials, but only with organic ones and precious metals. Bone, wood, coral, shells are often used in jewelry, usually to emphasize a central stone or to bring more color and beauty to the design. The first person to popularize Native American jewelry was Atsidi Sani, a Navajo jewelry maker who passed down his love for crafting to other people and thus helped this wonderful art develop. By 1880, Navajo artists started to create a name for themselves thanks to the beautiful Turquoise jewelry they crafted.

The single most important symbol of Native American jewelry is Turquoise, which is specific to the Navajo tribe. This beautiful stone is used in many types of jewelries as a central piece. Usually, it’s used in combination with silver to create unique rings, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, brooches, pendants etc. Turquoise jewelry can be more or less valuable depending on the type of stones used and the processing they go through. Each Turquoise extracted from the ground is different from the others, it has a different pattern, consistency, color, shape etc., so this implies that every single Turquoise jewelry is unique. The stone can also be cut into different shapes or can be arranged in interesting designs according to the artists’ preferences.

Native American jewelry items can be wonderful presents for your loved ones, but you have to make sure that the jewelries you buy are truly authentic. There are many cheap imitations on the aftermarket so you need to have the right information to know how to recognize authentic jewelry. Indian artists always sign or stamp their creations with their tribe’s hallmark or a symbol showing the value of the material (as is the case with silver). If you’re particularly interested in Turquoise jewelry, you should know the difference between treated and untreated stones. For instance, you should know that pure Turquoise has imperfections and it’s more porous, whereas treated stones are more durable.

Genuine Native American jewelry doesn’t come very cheap, so don’t be fooled by seemingly valuable jewelry that has a low price tag. Artists work many hours to create these jewelries, so the price they’re sold for is more than justified. Some jewels can costs thousands of dollars, but you can also find much more affordable authentic items at Indian artists’ associations or on special websites.

Native American jewelry is very popular right now, so get your loved ones genuine Turquoise jewelry to show them your love and appreciation.