Teller Family - Authentic Navajo
Acoma Jet, Coral and Turquoise Heishi Necklace
HK Item #NH51

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Turquoise matrix and coral pieces will vary somewhat from the necklace pictured here.

Sterling silver beads and hook closure.

Teller Family - Navajo
Jet, Coral and Turquoise Heishi Necklace

NH51 - 19" - $60 plus s/h
(ONLY ONE AVAILABLE)

What is heishi?

Heishi means shell and in the past, referred to pieces of shell that have been drilled and hand rolled or ground into bead shapes and strung as necklaces. With the reduced availability of some shell materials, the modern Native American artists also use hand made beads of other natural materials including stones when making heishi necklaces. Read more about heishi here: All About Heishi.

Acoma Jet is a solid, durable type of lignite coal that originated from wood. It is mined around the Acoma Pueblo region, among other places, thus the name Acoma Jet, or Jet for short. It is very popular for heishi, inlay and for fetish carvings. Read more about stones.

Turquoise comes in all shades of blue, to blue-green, with a possible shading towards brown-veined greens.
Read more about turquoise.
Matrix (veining) may or may not be present in any color(s). It is the natural variations in turquoise that make it appealing. The color of turquoise in American Indian jewelry ranges from brownish green to bright blue.

Coral, Red Coral (also called Red Branch Coral)
Red Coral is the common name given to Corallium Rubrum and several related species of marine coral. Red coral is a collection of hundreds of tiny animals living together in a colonies that resemble small leafless bushes growing on dark, rocky seabottom. The coral skeleton is composed hard calcium carbonate, colored in shades of red from pale pink to deep red. It can be semi-translucent to opaque. It is naturally matte, but can be polished to a glassy shine. Red coral is frequently dyed to enhance color and it can also be impregnated with resins or epoxies to fill surface fissures and flaws.

Coral jewelry has been found in ancient Egyptian and prehistoric European burials. The Romans believed coral could protect children from harm, as well as cure bites from snakes and scorpions and diagnose diseases by changing colour.