Posted 12 years ago
RoadrageinWY
(2 items)
I picked up this necklace and bracelet which are set with what seems to me to be stones made from some sort of shell. Anyone know where it might be from and what the stones are called? Thanks in advance.
Really interesting stones/shells. Makes me think I'm being looked at by a LOT of eyes! I believe these are shells and they are from the Horned Turbo (or sometimes called Turban) snail. They are sometimes called Cat's Eye shells, or Eye of Shiva shells. Here are a couple of links to pictures of other pieces.
http://image0-rubylane.s3.amazonaws.com/shops/gildedroom/AJ-452.1L.jpg
http://image0-rubylane.s3.amazonaws.com/shops/gildedroom/AJ-101.1L.jpg
It seems it was used to ward off the 'evil eye' in some parts of the world and in others represented the eye of Shiva, or third eye for those of Hindu beliefs. As for date or if this was for a particular ethnicity, I wouldn't have an idea about that. But it does look a little more eastern in design than Victorian, at least to me. Thanks for sharing your pieces.
It's also called Operculum. If you google Operculum Necklace, you'll find many examples
Many thanks for all of your comments - EstateAntiques, I also think this may be 800 silver. I'll probably give the pieces a try on ebay after the holiday and see how they do.
I've made a couple of 3 strand chokers that included bone beads they turned out beautiful! It seems they go with just about anything when using them in building jewelry. Thanks for sharing the pieces, they were awesome!