Genuine Turquoise Coral Inlay Indian Chief Silver Trophy Buckle by Jackson.

This Inlaid Trophy Buckle is an impressive celebration of Native American history. It was masterfully hand made from nickel Silver for a tarnish resistant high shine. The chief design is inlaid with genuine sky blue Turquoise, red Coral, and Mother of Pearl. Together these vibrant chips provide plenty of natural color. Traditional old western fine line engravings surround the design with a shine. Made in our shop by master buckle maker JR Jackson. It would make for an excellent gift. This buckle is 3-1/2" wide and 2-1/2" tall with a 1-1/2" wide keeper on the back.

There are many legends about Turquoise; The Pima consider it to bring good fortune and strength and believe that it helps overcome illness. The Zuni believe that blue turquoise was male and of the sky and green turquoise was female and of the earth. Pueblo Indians thought that its color was stolen from the sky. In Hopi legend the lizard who travels between the above and the below, excretes turquoise and that the stone can hold back floods. The Apache felt that turquoise on a gun or bow made it shoot straight. The Navajo consider it as good fortune to wear and believe it could appease the Wind Spirit.

A Navajo man once said of his people's oral histories. "If my children hear the stories, they will grow up to be good people." Native Americans think of the earth and the universe as a never-ending circle, and in this circle, man is just another animal. Native American legends reflect the view that human beings are no more important than any other thing, whether alive or inanimate. In the eye of the creator, they believe, man and woman, plant and animal, water and stone, are all equal, and they share the earth as partners - even as family.