Apple Coral Heishi Santo Domingo Necklace

Our Apple Coral Heishi Santo Domingo Necklace is a powerful expression of lineage, mastery, and living tradition, an heirloom piece that carries generations of Pueblo artistry within every strand. Composed of six flowing strands of hand-ground apple coral heishi, this necklace radiates warmth, strength, and unmistakable presence. The rich, brick-red tones of the coral are alive with subtle variation, each bead shaped slowly and intentionally by hand, honoring a process that values patience over speed and soul over perfection.

Apple coral, long treasured in Santo Domingo (Kewa) Pueblo jewelry, is prized for its deep, earthy red color, symbolic of life force, protection, and connection to the land. Historically sourced from Mediterranean coral and later trade routes, apple coral became an essential material in Pueblo adornment, often reserved for pieces of significance and ceremony. When ground into heishi beads, the coral is transformed into something both powerful and refined, its smooth, rhythmic form representing harmony and balance. Small accents of turquoise and jet punctuate the strands, a classic Santo Domingo signature that brings protection, contrast, and visual rhythm.

This necklace was created by one of the most revered Santo Domingo female artisans working today, an extraordinary maker whose work has been featured in an exhibition at the National Museum of the American Indian in New York. Her mastery is immediately felt in the precision of the heishi, the evenness of the strands, and the effortless way the necklace drapes. At the top, natural shell heishi provides a soft, grounding transition, allowing the coral to take center stage while honoring the traditional structure of Pueblo necklace design.

Jean Marie selected this piece for Pax Philomena not only for its striking beauty, but for the hands and history behind it. This is jewelry made by someone who carries ancestral knowledge forward with quiet confidence and unmatched skill. Worn with a simple dress or layered with other treasured pieces, this Apple Coral Heishi Necklace is more than adornment, it is a statement of respect, culture, and continuity. A piece to collect, cherish, and wear with pride, knowing it connects you directly to one of the great living traditions of the Southwest.