Provenance: Provenance: Private Collection, Manila

ABOUT THE WORK

Early accounts show that in precolonial societies, gold necklaces were among the most valued forms of wealth. Loop-in-loop chains were also the most popular adornments in the Visayas and other diverse provinces, as the number and quality of neck ornaments worn reveal one’s prestige and status within the community. In Mindanao, distinct necklaces consist of “gear beads” or dentate beads, either with highly polished exterior surfaces that produce shiny serpentine cords or the rarer ones with unpolished exteriors that expose the underlying granulation. This particular highly rare three-coil gear beaded gold necklace is a marvelous ornament from the Surigao province. It consists of an inner loop-inloop chain supporting interlocking unpolished gear beads. The beads that fit into one another so tightly appear to form one long sinuous cord likened to a golden serpent. Possession of impressive gold necklaces such as this exceptional adornment piece and a family’s display of these ornaments in significant quantity and quality were considered essential since the precolonial period.