Cheetah Conservation Fund – 30th Anniversary Spring Tour - Online Auction
Auction Ends: May 31, 2020 10:00 PM EDT

Jewelry

Ostrich Eggshell Necklace Assorted styles (CCF Arts & Crafts)

Item Number
223
Estimated Value
35 USD
Buy Now Price
35 USD
Quantity Available
0
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Item Description

SAN BUSHMAN COLLECTION

SB-02: Ostrich Eggshell Necklace Assorted styles

Each piece of jewelry is one-of-a-kind. Purchasing Namibian craft jewelry not only provides sustainable income and an alternative livelihood for the people of Namib-ia, but also supports the continuation of traditional craft-making practices.

The San Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert in Namibia apply their traditional skills to create jewelry, often with natural resources and materials available to them. Largely isolated from colonialism until the last century, San Bushmen women create intricate pieces of jewelry using wild seeds, pieces of tree roots, horns, bone, leather, tortoiseshell and most importantly, beads created from ostrich eggshell.

Item Special Note

Ostich Eggshell Jewelry - According to archaeological studies, ostrich eggshell bead making is over a 40,000 year old tradition. Ostrich egghsell jewelry has been worn as ornamentation and often given as gifts for thousands of years. The process to create the intricate jewelry is very time consuming, as each bead is hand made by the San Bushmen. The San Bushmen are the oldest inhabitants of Africa and many still maintain a similar lifestyle to that of their ancestors from thousands of years ago. Ostrich eggs are broken into shards and then further broken into smaller pieces. Each piece is then hand shaped into beads using handmade tools specifically for the job. Finally, they are strung onto a rolled sinew thread and rubbed down to smooth and polish them. Bushman Artisans use natural dyes to color the beads in different shades of black and brown.