Native American Sterling Silver Turquoise Mother-of-Pearl, Jet, Turquoise Inlay Zuni-Made Pendant/Pin

Genuine handmade Native American piece comes directly from the Southwestern U.S. The use of gemstones for personal adornment by Southwestern Indians dates from prehistoric times, and the use of silver by the Navajo, Zuni, and Hopi is almost 100 years old.

The organic gem coral is the skeleton of coral polyps which live in the sea. Dull when harvested, it can be polished to a high shine. Red and pink varieties are generally found in warm Asian and Mediterranean waters. Coral has been carved in China for 2,000 years and was used medicinally and as an amulet in other ancient cultures. Sea bamboo is a vivid red gem from the coral family. Fossilized coral dates from the Ordovician period of prehistory and displays beautiful colors and a gorgeous starburst pattern when polished.

Beautiful mother-of-pearl has long been used in jewelry and for other decorative purposes. Also known as nacre, mother-of-pearl is the lustrous layer found on the inside of shells of certain mollusk species. The smoothness of the material protects the mollusk's body and defends against damage and disease. If the mollusk's body becomes irritated by a parasite or foreign body, the animal may isolate the cause of the problem by encasing it in secreted nacre. The resulting object is a pearl.

Beautiful turquoise is a phosphate mineral popular all over the world. Mined since 5000 BC, it is one of the first gemstones known to be used by humans. Color variation from sky-blue to medium green is affected by differing amounts of copper and iron, more copper giving the stone a bluer color and more iron a greener one. Beautiful light blue turquoise is mined in Northern Iran and other varieties occur in Mexico, the United States and elsewhere.