Kachina Fetish Necklace

I don’t often delve too deep into Heishi and Fetish work, mostly because I get burned more that half the time! This one was described by the seller as Eskimo with fish and seals. :rofl:
It looks like Santo Domingo work to me. Real inlay in the eyes and mouth. The kachina seems to be carved out of two halfs?? Just wondering if I got got again really. Any thoughts on value and what the medium is? As in what kind of bone or antler?

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I too got tired of getting burned when buying fetish necklaces. I found a really helpful chart from Keshi, a NM non- profit that promotes Zuni arts that describes some of the things we should stay away from when purchasing fetishes.

Thanks Bree, I too use that guideline. It has helped some but only with Zuni, the examples don’t cover other tribes which do stack with no spacers and do wind the thick backing. I would really love to see information on the Navajo and Santo Domingo(Kewa Pueblo now) heishi and fetish, but I have not seen anything published to date. Still relying on catching those drops of knowledge where I can find them! :slight_smile:

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I’m curious to know what kind of bone this is carved from too. Knowing that will definitely help determine the origins.