**Originally Listed At $1000**

Pre-Columbian, Southern Mexico/Guatemala, Olmec culture, ca. 1150 to 550 BCE. A gorgeous nephrite jadeite spoon necklace. The jadeite used to make this necklace is beautiful, with deep grey-green, brown-green, and white tones. The form is a long, rectangular trough drilled through the back in three places for suspension. A round bowl at the center of the trough, expands and deepens the sides. This was made to be used and worn during shamanic rituals. Psychoactive substances seem to have been used in ritual near-universally in ancient Mesoamerica, as the Spanish described upon their arrival. Items found through archaeological investigations attest to how important drug rituals were for religious ceremonies and healing. Size: 8" W x 2" H (20.3 cm x 5.1 cm)

This necklace was made by string cutting, drilling, and using sandstone as an abrasive, all remarkable achievements, given that jadeite is an incredibly hard stone to work. Olmec artisans used long distance trade routes to acquire the material, bringing jadeite from Eastern Guatemala, over three hundred miles from their homeland. Jadeite seems to have been associated with water, vegetation, and young corn, the staple food of Olmec life. Based on burial practices, particularly the objects from important burials at La Venta in the present day Mexican state of Tabasco, we believe that jade was reserved for high nobility, royalty, and the gods.

Provenance: private Hawaii, USA collection; ex-Ian Arundel collection, California, USA, the Old Curiosity Cabinet, Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, California, USA, collected 1950-1970

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#123610

Small chips appropriate to age, with some encrustation on the back. Old inventory label on the backside.