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Among the Hopi Indians, turquoise is believed to bring good fortune. It enters into the adornment of fetishes used to insure luck in the chase, and finds application in many ceremonials, such as the famed Snake Dance. Dr J Walter Fewkes had the following notes."The priesthood of the bow have three fetishes which are arranged in the form of an alter on the floor of the Kiva during the ceremony in December. These fetishes are rude effigies made of a prescribed wood (the subterranean branch of cott

The Zuni value the turquoise more highly than does any other Pueblo tribe, with the exception of the Hopi. A single string of beads of good quality is said to be worth several horses. In former times the Zuni necklaces were more carefully made than they are today, and numbers of them, worn only on ceremonial occasions, have been handed down from father to elder son for several generations. Two red shells inlaid with turquoise and worn pendant to the necklaces during the certain religious rights

Here at Alltribes Indian Art we are always seeking out all types turquoise from around the world. This year is no exception; with the closing of the sleeping beauty mine in June of 2012 the supply and demand has been extremely high and difficult. Turquoise prices continue to rise, and finding the right quality for Native American jewelry is not easy. Fortunately, Alltribes Indian Art has been collecting turquoise from mines all over the world for over forty years. From green turquoise to blue tu

Turquoise finds application by virtue of its supposed efficacy and consequently is prominent in many charms, amulets and fetishes. Few religious rights take place without its use and the paraphernalia of the priesthood abound in objects adorned with it. Turquoise indeed, may be said to hold a fundamental place in the religious ideas of the Pueblo Indians and in their outward ceremonial expression of them. The turquoise utilized varies from very inferior material to really beautiful stones. The m

This is an expert taken from the book "Turquois" written in 1915, by Joseph Pogue, Memoirs of the National Academy of Sciences. Note the spelling of Turquoise is turquois in 1915. This is Part 1 in a 10 Part series so check back next week. The turquois is today in wide use among Indians of the Southwest, and it forms one of their most cherished possessions. As in the past, it still finds a ceremonial as well as an ornamental application.The Pueblo Indians find great pleasure in turquois and seld