Charm Necklace
Arts of the Americas
Among the Tucano of the northwestern Amazon basin, stories abound of people turning into animals to learn about their habits and of animals teaching people how to use certain resources in the natural world. Shamanic knowledge contains detailed descriptions of these encounters, and many shamans claim that animals have revealed to them an unexpected food source or the cure for an illness. This necklace of finely carved animal and human forms may have been worn by a shaman to acknowledge such a relationship.
MEDIUM
Palm nut, seeds, plant fiber
DATES
mid–20th century
DIMENSIONS
6 1/4 × 3/4 × 8 1/4 in. (15.9 × 1.9 × 21 cm)
(show scale)
ACCESSION NUMBER
61.89
CREDIT LINE
Gift of E.R. Squibb and Sons
CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION
Necklace decorated with animal- and human-figurine beads separated by black seed beads. The animals consist of 5 frogs, 3 beetles, 2 lizards, 1 turtle, 1 winged insect (cicada?), and 1 bird. There are two human figurines carved out of an orange-brown material. The winged insect and bird beads are carved out of the same material; all the other animals are carved out of black coconut shell. The beads are strung onto a plant-fiber cord.
Condition: good; some of the small seed beads are broken or are breaking.
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
CAPTION
Tukano. Charm Necklace, mid–20th century. Palm nut, seeds, plant fiber, 6 1/4 × 3/4 × 8 1/4 in. (15.9 × 1.9 × 21 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of E.R. Squibb and Sons, 61.89. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 61.89_acetate_bw.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, 61.89_acetate_bw.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
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RIGHTS STATEMENT
Creative Commons-BY
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