Silver Cast “Double Hands” Naja Necklace [SOLD]

Early Navajo jewelry contained elements that were borrowed directly from Spanish colonial and Mexican ornament. One of these items is the naja, a crescent form of Moorish origin. The Spanish conquerors in the Southwest outfitted their horses in elaborate silver ornaments—one of which was the naja that hung directly on the forehead of the horse as a part of the bridle.

The Navajo incorporated the naja in their jewelry as a pendant dangling on silver necklaces, commonly called squash blossom necklaces. In this instance, a beautiful cast silver naja with a pair of hands curving around a fleur de lis and capped with a beautiful blue triangular turquoise cab is suspended from a string of handmade silver beads.

Interestingly, the back of the naja has a silver bar of the type seen on bola ties or scarf slides. This naja can be removed from the necklace and worn as a bola or scarf slide. That is a very interesting concept.

Provenance: From the estate of Transcendental artist Florence Pierce of Albuquerque who passed away in 2007 at the age of 89. She was best known for luminescent paintings made of pigmented resins on reflective surfaces. Her interest in abstraction began in the 1930s when she was an associate of the Transcendental Painting Group. The New York Times called her “the doyenne of abstract art in the Southwest” following her art exhibit in New York City in 2006.