Antique Naga tribe necklace from Nagaland, Myanmar. 27x12x2 cms, 93 gramos.

This rare and spectacular antique buffalo pendant from the Naga tribe is made with a variety of materials such as wood, bone  and cotton for the rope. The central motif is a realistically portrayed human face wih tribal tatoos in his face. The forehead also has  two small portrays of bull motifs. At the upper part of the head two very big bone horns have been added. The long wooden pieces have three human figures, the top two with the same tatoos and the bottom ones with different motifs. 

The mithun (gayal) or the Indian bison (bos fontalis) is synonymous with Naga culture. Being semi-domesticated, and having a designated owner even though it lives in fenced-off tracts in the wild, the human-animal relationship is unique. It is the state animal of both Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. The mithun head or horns are almost a signature of Naga architecture inasmuch as they overshadow all other motifs in their magnificence and variety especially in the vernacular wooden architecture of the many tribes of Nagaland. The mithun is a powerful symbol of wealth, prosperity and fertility and dignifies house façades in the form of mithun head carvings which traditionally declared the social status of the owner.

This necklace was purchased a few years ago by a friend of ours in the Myanmar jungle. 

Weight:  93 grams

Size: 27x12x2 cms (45,5 cms including the rope)

Origin: Nagaland, Myanmar

Date: 1900´s ?

The Naga people of Northeast India and Northwest Burma are comprised of a conglomeration of different tribes, united under the “Naga” name to distinguish themselves as a unique political and cultural society within the border of other nations. Though little is known about the origins and history of the Naga people, the jewelry and beadwork for which they are known have been considered by some scholars to be the “most beautiful, elaborate ornamentations of any tribal culture”. For the Naga, theirornamentations are not mere decoration – they’re a part of the wearer’s identity and that of the tribe to which the wearer belongs.