20" Kewa Pueblo Hand-rolled Necklace

This elegant hand-rolled necklace was made by Kewa Pueblo jeweler, Delbert Crespin.  The beads are jet, clam shell, turquoise, and catlinite.  It has a lobster clasp.  More about hand-rolled beads below.

Size: 20" Long

Hand-rolled beads are made by chipping out pieces of stone or shell.  A hole is drilled into the center of each chip.  The chips are strung on a wire and rolled, and rolled, and rolled until they are all the same width.  Sometimes they are graduated – a difficult task!  They are then polished until smooth.  There are hand-rolled necklaces from Kewa Pueblo that are over a thousand years old.  In the “old days”, the holes were drilled with a hand-pump drill, strung on handmade string, and rolled on sandstone.   There is nothing quite like hand-rolled Kewa beads!