Olmec - Proto Maya Jade Bead Necklace Pre-Columbian, Southern Mexico to Guatemala, Olmec to Proto-Maya culture, ca. 500 BCE to 300 CE. A stunning ensemble of 22 sizeable, hand-carved jade beads, all strung on a modern cord strand to be wearable. All displaying spherical forms, the beautiful beads boast rich hues of mint, seafoam, midnight, and forest greens, as well as celadon, shamrock, teal, and viridian. Size (necklace): 14" L (largest bead): 1.0" W x 0.75" H. Research in the late 1990s and early 2000s pinpointed the source of "Olmec blue" jadeite at being in the lowland Motagua River near the modern-day border of Guatemala and Honduras; stone from this source was carved and traded widely throughout early Mesoamerica. The value of jade for ancient people lay in its symbolic power: perhaps its color was associated with water and vegetation; later, the Maya would place jade beads in the mouths of the dead. Many scholars have argued that the demand for jadeite contributed to the rise of long-distance trading networks and to the rise of urban centers in ancient Mesoamerica. This would have been an exceedingly valuable and rare ceremonial item.

good condition