Eugene and Georgia Sanchez, whose family has made jewelry for five generations, are a married couple who make “heishi necklaces,” one of the traditional jewelry forms, at Santo Domingo Pueblo, New Mexico. Heishi means “shell” in the language of the Kewa (Santo Domingo) people. These necklaces are made by finely cutting many kinds of natural minerals into discs, stringing them as beads on a thread and joining them, so that they form a natural gradation from the neck to the top of the necklace. Work by Eugene and Georgia Sanchez uses a silver bead as an accent at the clasp, which serves as their hallmark (the mark of the artists). Materials: Turquoise, spiny oyster shell, jet, pipestone and sterling silver Dimensions: Length 54 cm (including clasp); bead size: smallest part 0.6 cm in diameter, largest part 0.8 cm in diameter Artists: Eugene and Georgia Sanchez (Kewa (Santo Domingo) Pueblo)
