Necklace
ClassificationsClothing and Adornments-neck ornaments
Date19th Century
Made AtFederated States of Micronesia
MediumCoconut, shell and fiber
Dimensions11 × 10 1/4 × 1 in. (27.9 × 26 × 2.5 cm)
Credit LineBowers Museum Purchase
Object number2021.3.1
DescriptionThis is a 19th century coconut shell necklace from the Chuuk Island chain located in the Eastern Caroline Islands. Photographs from the Chuuk Islands dating back to the 19th century show men wearing multiple strings of these necklaces. The necklaces could be found on multiple island chains throughout Micronesia including Palau and the Marshall Islands as well.Necklaces made of small coconut shell rings were once worn by men as prestige objects in Micronesia’s Caroline and Marshall Islands. The individual rings were made by cleaning and shaping coconut shells into discs and then perforating them with a pump or bow drill. An intricate coconut fiber binding gives the necklace its circular shape.
On View
On viewCollections
mid 20th Century
20th Century
early to mid 20th Century
early 19th Century
mid 20th Century
mid 20th Century
mid 20th Century
late 20th Century
mid 20th Century
mid 20th Century
19th Century