African Batik Bone Bead and Sterling Silver Necklace Pictured is a handmade necklace made by jewelry designer Christina Dickson. Dickson used only the finest quality materials such as sterling silver and Batik bone beads in this necklace design. This design is very unique with the batik beads and ornamental sterling silver beads. This piece is in good condition with no known damage. 22" long weight:0.2lb History of Batik: Batik Bone Beads are distinguishable by their unique geometric patterns and contrasting black/ white or brown/ white colors. The patterning is achieved using a centuries old wax-resist dying technique known as “Batik” or “mudcloth dying”. Thought to date back to the 4th Century, the technique was originally employed by Javanese tailors for the dying of cloth – usually for royalty. Peat from the river bed was often used to achieve darker colors, hence the term “mudcloth Batik”. Batik Bone Beads undergo a very similar process to that employed in the 4th Century. Before dying, the beads are first left out in the sun to enhance their whiteness. This natural method of bleaching also causes the bone to become more porous. Designs are then applied to each bead by hand using a thin stick coated in beeswax. Usually, only the areas intended for dying will remain exposed. Then, the beads are immersed into a natural dye solution made of peat and water, or plant dye - a process generally repeated several times to achieve a near-black color. After the dye has set, the wax is carefully removed to expose the preserved white pattern.