AWARD WINNING!! Sleeping Beauty Turquoise Bear Claw Sterling Silver Squash Blossom Necklace.

Featured in "Arizona Highways Turquoise Blue Book Indian Jewelry Digest" from Arizona highways Collectors Series, magazine #38499 on page 68. The Picture from the magazine is the 4th picture below.

This impressive Sterling Silver Sleeping Beauty Turquoise Bear Claw necklace was made in our shop by Lucky, copied from an award winning piece featured in a 1977 issue of 'Arizona Highways' magazine. Each nugget of natural Sleeping Beauty Turquoise on this stunning necklace has been individually set in hand made bezels of Sterling Silver artistically balanced with hand crafted arches and 'Tear Drops' of Sterling Silver. Plus, each piece has a hand stamped Sterling Silver bezel holding genuine bear claws. The center piece of Sleeping Beauty Turquoise has its bezel soldered to a circular hand-cut sheet of Sterling Silver with two bear claws facing each other creating a balance for the whole necklace. This necklace is 25" long with single and double stands of Sterling Silver beads.

The use of bear claw holds great significance in Native American traditions. A potent source of strength was the bear, whose powers were often invoked before entering battle. Warriors sometimes painted their faces with marks resembling bear claw scratches and carried double-edged knives with Handles carved from the jawbones of bears as good luck charms. It was believed that bear power could also cure illness. Shamans or medicine men from many different groups frequently dressed as bears when working to heal the sick. Just as honoring the bear spirit could bring blessings to people, provoking the spirit might bring them harm. For that reason, some tribes, most notably the Apache, forbade their hunters to kill a bear, or even to touch the carcass of one found dead in the woods.