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Beach 800 Finds And Help Needed


mn90403

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8 hours ago, mn90403 said:

I spent the day today going to 3 jewelry stores.

 

8 hours ago, mn90403 said:

All of this experience reminds me of trying to deal a bit with a jewelry store.  Let me be very kind and say most of them are low ballers and unreliable if you don't know their game.  How do you find a good jewelry store?

I can't answer your question, but thanks for the story.  Reminds me of pawn shops -- everything they have is worth an arm and a leg.  Your stuff?  Peanuts.

Maybe you already mentioned this, but are their any (real) Native Americans you can communicate with?  They might be up on this kind of thing.

 

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I sent a picture to one online.  He just happens to be Navajo.  He gave me an idea that many of the heishi beads can be purchased from a couple of wholesalers.  This would make some sense as they do require some handling to make them uniform.  I looked and the beads are sold by the string.  I could find lots of that stuff at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show that I've been to a couple of times.

I looked up the process of making the beads and I was surprised but I guess it was something that was developed by the trading Indians in the southwest for a few hundred years.  The techniques have now been shifted to Asia so while natural substances are used the raw materials are available through dealers.

The most helpful guy told me about stabilizing the mother of pearl.  He said that it would normally not be flat but it is taken in thin sheets off a shell and then glued to a backing that makes it flat.  I guess those components can be purchased separately also. 

The parts of this necklace are quite nice.  That is what makes it 'stand out' from a lesser piece.  I could see the maker asking a premium for it if the story is told properly.  Zuni jewelry is much the same.  The maker makes a lot of difference in the look and the value.

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I like detective stories and detective work is a big part of serious detecting.  Whether it is in researching prospective sites or finding out about what you just pulled out of the ground.  Let us know how it turns out.  And maybe you want to post it in some of the general finds forums so you can get input from non-Equinox users too.

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Today I stopped by a different jewelry store.  The lady at the counter didn't know anything about the bear or the other items but the guy there working on repairs came to me and looked and said the bear was ivory and the piece was very old.  He said the clasp was silver but the wire was just wire that strings it together.  He said I needed to go to an antique jewelry store to get more info.  They both thought I was there to sell it because the jeweler was near an area with pawn shops.

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10 hours ago, mn90403 said:

...The guy there working on repairs came to me and looked and said the bear was ivory and the piece was very old.

I'm suspicious, but that's typical.  😁  Old ivory is usually yellowed from age, but I suppose if it were in salt water that could affect the color.  (New ivory is illegal to own, as I'm sure most here know.)  Here's a decent set of tests that might help:

https://www.wikihow.com/Tell-Ivory-from-Bone

 

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13 hours ago, GB_Amateur said:

(New ivory is illegal to own, as I'm sure most here know.)

Most of the time it is, however if it is purchased from a native from Alaska it is still legal, however make sure it is not bone.

I have friends from Alaska and they have made several pieces for me all handcrafted and beautiful.

The rest of the necklace would be hard for it to be made in Alaska to my knowledge.

 

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I looked at the eyes of the bear with a loop the other day and one is perfectly round ... like a stain.  It would be hard in my opinion to get something that round.  The other eye had a bit of a 'bleed over' or slight imperfection so it is just another clue.

I have some ivory on my cue sticks.  I compared it but I still could not come to a conclusion on the material of the bear.

The prohibition on ivory is enforced.  Someone I know who makes cue sticks had to pay a hefty fine for using ivory even tho the ivory was purchased many years ago.

 

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