Mochishop likes tribal jewellery [tribal jewelry]. We stock a huge range of what we call tribal, as this is among our design specialities. But what exactly is jewellery which is "tribal"?
Tribal - in context of jewellery and accessories - is a term which is interchangeable - if not absolutely synonymous - with ethnic or regional. In other words, we can agree that tribal jewellery has elements of design, material or craft which are exclusively local. We feel that this a very important distinction, in a world where most things are homogeneous and mass-produced. Few consumables we buy these days have any real identity. And surely identity is exactly what we are looking for in a piece of jewellery.
In the first part of What Is Tribal Jewellery? we will give a few illustrations of the products we have which hail from the Eastern part of the globe -
At Mochishop we have, for instance, ox-bone jewellery. Our ox-bone jewellery is decidedly Tibetan as the ox - or yak to be precise - is a domesticated beast of Tibet. Consequently our ox-bone jewellery incorporates Tibetan designs and themes. We have ox bone jewellery bearing Tibetan symbols, necklaces depicting Tibetan cosmology and pendants bearing the Tibetan spiritual chant om mani padme hum.
Many of our ox-bone designs are replicated in other materials. You will also find Tibetan spiritual chants inscribed on our Tibetan silver ring necklace, and our bronze mantra pendant.
Moving westward from Tibet into China, we have a range of dragon jewellery as the dragon is an important part of Chinese myth and legend. In true Chinese style, we have a jade dragon necklace as well as a dragon and phoenix bracelet. Like the dragon, the mythical phoenix is an indelible part of Chinese folklore. Often the dragon and phoenix are paired together as symbols of lovers, the masculine and feminine.
From Asia we go to Polynesia, from which we have introduced a brand new range of ceramic pendants with Polynesian signatures. In this style we have both a green swirl necklace and blue swirl necklace. Other tribal necklaces bear Polynesian god heads.
We hope we have given a clear illustration about what tribal jewellery is, and how it pertains to local culture, not global. We also hope that you have enjoyed looking at some of our examples of jewellery which are made with Eastern motifs and materials. Be they Tibetan, Chinese or Polynesian, there are plenty of styles for those who like the look of adventure and exploration.
In Part 2 we'll bring you examples of Mochishop Jewellery [jewelry] that has its origins in the regional cultures of the Western world.



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