Kingman Turquoise and Heishi Necklace Santo Domingo

This unique turquoise and heishi necklace is a museum-quality tribute to Native American craftsmanship and living tradition. Each piece of genuine Kingman turquoise has been thoughtfully shaped and polished by a master female artisan from the Santo Domingo Pueblo, whose work has been exhibited at the National Museum of the American Indian in New York. Her hands carry generations of knowledge, and her approach honors both precision and spirit, allowing the natural beauty, rich matrix, and individuality of each stone to remain fully intact.

Kingman turquoise, mined in Arizona, is one of the oldest and most storied turquoise sources in the United States. Prized for its vivid blue and green tones often threaded with golden or brown matrix, it has been revered by Native American tribes for centuries as a stone of protection, strength, healing, and a sacred connection between Earth and Sky. In this necklace, the stones are intentionally spaced, giving each bead room to breathe and allowing the color and character of every piece of turquoise to speak on its own.

Finishing the necklace near the clasp are traditional heishi beads, a defining element of Santo Domingo Pueblo jewelry. Heishi, meaning “shell” in the Keres language, is among the oldest forms of jewelry-making in North America, dating back thousands of years. Each bead is painstakingly hand-cut, drilled, and polished, a process that can take days for a single strand and requires extraordinary patience, discipline, and skill. The transition from turquoise to heishi is both visual and symbolic, grounding the piece in ancestral practice.

For the Santo Domingo people, the pairing of turquoise and shell is far more than decorative. It is a continuation of story, ceremony, and cultural memory. Such necklaces have long been worn in important gatherings, given as gifts of honor, and cherished as personal talismans. This piece embodies elegance, cultural pride, and the quiet power of tradition carried forward by women artisans who continue to work entirely by hand.

What you see pictured is the exact necklace you will receive. It is a one-of-a-kind creation, impossible to replicate, and a meaningful addition to any serious collection. Once this piece is gone, it cannot be made again, not only because of the stones themselves, but because of the hands, history, and moment in time that brought it into being.

Necklace Length: 21"

Number of Strands: 1

Made in USA