Native Americans have been making jewelry for several thousand years. Most prehistoric Native American jewelry is made of shell, bone and stone beads; porcupine quills; and large shells inlaid with semiprecious stones. It was not until the coming of the Spaniards that American Indians used silver and other metals in their jewelry.
The Navajo learned metal-smithing from the Spaniards around 1850. Before that time, Navajo jewelry primarily consisted of shell, turquoise and ornate inlays. After that time, the concha (silver disc) and squash-blossom designs in silver flourished and became very popular. Silver-smithing spread to other tribes and regions but the Native Americans of the Southwest remain the most celebrated native jewelers.
All Native American groups made beaded jewelry. Native American beadwork is very intricate and skilled. The tribes of the Great Plains are particularly famous for their beadwork. Glass Czech seed beads are a favored medium, but bone, porcupine quill and hairpipe are traditional materials that are still being used.
Wampum beads are made from quahog and whelk shells. They are held to be sacred and valuable to tribes in the Northeastern United States. Traditionally wampum was woven into large belts that were highly symbolic of an occasion, such as a treaty. Native American artists are using the white and purple wampum in jewelry as beads and set in silver as pendants and earrings.
Sterling silver and turquoise are still very popular in Native American jewelry. Now Native American artists also create jewelry in gold, platinum and precious jewels using traditional and modern designs. These bold and elegant pieces have a distinctive look that is highly sought after by individuals and museums alike.