Any idea what to call this necklace, purchased in Africa in the 70's

Do necklaces of this sort have a special name? A neighbor having an estate sale said she purchased it on her honeymoon in Africa in the 1970s. Any keywords much appreciated. Thank you.

 

Ruthiebait - me being the Ruth. I see shells, beads, teeth, nuts (not those kind King!) and some other assorted bits. It's just weird enough to be interesting.

 

Amulet?
Talisman?

 

Agreed, it is a bit interesting with all the nuts, teeth, berries, beads and shells, etc. Looks different than what you see everyday. Yes, positive it was a tourist item. Just curious if 45 year old tourist necklaces from Africa had any interest, seeking key words to see if I can find similar sold.

Amulet and Talisman... thanks, a good start.

 

Using the key word "amulet" I am finding a couple of others, all on Pinterest.

Now thinking this might be from Nepal, not Africa. The discrepancy might come down to my foggy memory. I had this in a box for years with some other items, the estate sale was in 2012 or so. Seller might have said she got in on her honeymoon in the 70's and I assumed it was from Africa. Anyway, all I've seen so far were from Nepal.

Anyway, got a head start on my research.... thanks!

 

What country are the coins from? The shells and snail "trap door" points more to a tropical area.

 

I can't make heads or tails out of the coins. (No pun intended.) One coin is practically rubbed smooth and the other has a language with characters I'm not familiar with. Will take a better look in good light tomorrow.

Not thinking this has a huge value or anything -- was just trying to find one or two similar on Ebay to see whether it would be worth listing. Figured there would be hundreds if not thousands on Ebay if only I found the right key words, but can't even find a single one so far. (Maybe not permitted because of Ebay rules and the teeth??)

 

Here's one for sale (not eBay) that is less interesting than yours ... I'd say 'sure, list it'
http://www.ethnos.biz/shop/shamanic-amulet-necklace-raksha-ma


edited to add:
here's one on Etsy
https://www.etsy.com/listing/482107...llery&ga_search_query=newari&ref=sr_gallery_2

 

OH!

And I thought Fred might be good. Call it and see if it moves.

 

Hi Quirky girl. I found that first link, but not the Etsy one. At least I have a price point for a modern one. That is helpful.

Could try listing on Ebay, might be that they pull it right off due to teeth and bones. Just a little suspicious there isn't a single one on there. If I list, guess I'll find out. Will probably use my secondary account.

Thank you.

 

You're welcome
Maybe not if you don't specifically mention "teeth and bones"

various natural materials is a nice catch-all phrase, but I bet others here could come up with better 'safe' key words for you.

 

"Various Natural Materials" is a great suggestion. Going to go with that.

 

or .... maybe you can get away with those words ....
just found this on eBay "solds" (notice the nice price)
I still think yours is nicer looking!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-Tib...s-Bone-Stone-Talismans-Necklace-/132032937246

 

It's used a lot but would 'organic' be a good word?

 

Ya...& you can charge more for Organic !!!
Everyone does !!

 

Shocked at the selling price, over $300? This one may have some different features, but say no more, I'm going to list mine. We'll see what happens.

 

And if you misspell it......you'll get even more hits.

 

Keep us apprised please.

 

Sure.