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One of the most characteristic of Southwest Indian jewelry designs, the squash blossom necklace was not traditional until after the arrival of
Europeans, when Navajo silversmiths adopted the crescent-shaped "naja" of the Spanish into their own artwork. The earliest Navajo squash blossom
necklaces were silver only; the now-familiar turquoise inlay patterns were a
Zuni innovation in the 19th century. It is unknown where the
name "squash blossom necklace" originally came from, since neither the Navajo, Zuni nor other Pueblo Indians call the necklace this in their own
language. It may have been a mistranslation between English, Spanish, and one of the Southwest Indian languages, or perhaps someone thought
the shape of the beads looked like squash blossoms at some point. (You can compare an actual squashblossom to one of the necklaces here:
Do squash blossom necklaces resemble squashblossoms?) The similarity is not
especially striking, but it could have happened. The necklace design is not a traditional stylized depiction of squash blossoms in any Southwestern
Indian culture we know of, though.
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There is a thriving trade in something called "dead pawn" squash blossom necklaces, which are basically antique jewelry once owned by a Native
American which ended up in a Southwestern pawn shop, in one of the usual ways (stolen and sold there, taken from the indebted owner by a creditor
who needed quick money, or pawned there by an Indian who was never able to reclaim it). Frankly, I'm
rather uncomfortable with dead pawn jewelry--modern dealers and owners obviously haven't done anything wrong, but most of the pieces have
at worst thievery and at best poverty and desperation in their past, otherwise they would have been sold at a store for a profit. Also, buying this
jewelry today will not pass even one dollar along to the artist's descendants or any other native person. Why not buy some of the beautiful jewelry
made by the many talented Navajo, Zuni and Pueblo Indian artists still working today, instead? Here are some good places to buy
squash blossom necklaces guilt-free, and support the ongoing Indian jewelry-making tradition with your purchase. If you have a website of
squash blossom jewelry to add to this list,
let us know.
We gladly advertise any individual native artist or native-owned art store here free of charge, provided that all necklaces are made by tribally
recognized American Indian/First Nations artists.
Thank you for your interest in Native American squash blossom necklaces!
Squash Blossom Necklaces
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 Pueblo JewelrySquash blossom necklaces and other handmade Southwest Indian jewelry from a Pueblo artist. |
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Pueblo Chelles Squash blossoms and other jewelry from a variety of Southwest Indian artists. |
Jewelry by Southwest American Indians
Southwestern Indian Jewelry
The Beauty of Navajo Jewelry
The Beauty of Hopi Jewelry
Zuni Jewelry
The Indian Arts and Crafts Act: US law against passing off fake American Indian crafts as genuine.
Squash Blossom Necklace: Brief article on the origins of the squash blossom design.
Antique Indian Silver Jewelry: Article on the history of modern Navajo and other southwest Indian silverwork.
The History of American Indian Jewelry: History of Southwest Indian silver and turquoise jewelry.
Native American Jewelry: Orrin contributed to this larger directory of Indian crafts, many of which are authentic.
American Indian Cultures: View our pages for individual Indian tribes, most of which have artistic information.
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