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Posted 1 year ago
NativeJewe…
(34 items)
My weekly garage sale find. It appears to be an early sand cast Yei Men Navajo Necklace. It does test silver. There are no marks. It weighs 93 grams and is 27" long. It is clearly old and hand made. I started to try to polish it for the wife, but realized about half way through maybe I should have left the original patina. Just wondering if anyone can give me an approximate age and value and if in fact it is what I believe it is. Also, does polishing it effect the value? Thank you for your time.
Native American JewelryWhile the tradition of making jewelry out of shells and beads dates to preh…
Fine Jewelry NecklacesNecklaces are among the oldest forms of fine jewelry, in no small part beca…
It was likely made no earlier than the 70s, the long tubular silver beads are of that vintage. As for cleaning, wearing silver against your skin will give it a nice natural glow. However, cleaning that piece will not hurt the value. Very early pieces should not be cleaned.
Thank you for your time. Was just wondering if it was a Yei Men Necklace and also, maybe a value? Thank you again
Hi again Yei are not common elements in Navajo silver because they are a very sacred being in the culture and until just before the turn of the 19th/20th century it was forbidden to make any permanentimage of a Yei. The Elders said that anyone making a permanent image would go blind and die. The first three permanent images were 3 rug weavings, two of the weavers went blind and died. Yeis are used in healing ceremony and are sand paintings that take the illness out of the sick person and is then thrown to the wind (thus not a permanent image).
The yei in your necklace are pretty crude images of the"Spirit people" sometime also called the ancestral holy ones. As for value, unfortunately late silver seems to be going for melt lately due to the high value of silver. Yours could bring $200.00 to $400.00 depending on who was wanting it. Most people want lots of turquios in a squash. Check Ebay for late squash blossoms of similar weight and see what they bring for a closer value.
Regards
Robin
Thank you again for your time. Have a great day, I believe this answers all my questions.
Thanks tora...
Thanks Valentino
Thanks bratjdd