Small Navajo Onyx and Blue Opal Pendant

This Navajo channel inlay pendant is small and elegant!  It is inlaid with black onyx, sterling silver, and shimmering blue opal with flashes of green.  The bale is large enough for a thicker chain.

Size: 1.125" H x .5" W

Channel inlay jewelry is a process used extensively by Native American jewelers, particularly those in Zuni Pueblo.  Many other talented jewelers from other tribes in the Southwest also make channel inlay jewelry.  The metal channel, usually silver, is soldered onto the back to create the design.  Afterward, the stones are cut to fit into each section.  It is an exacting process which shows in the beauty of the work of the finished piece(s).