Spondylus tears

Spondylus fragments that are workable into pendants are very hard to come by. It is difficult to find good sized ones with rich colors. I found two fragments that were pretty much the same shape and bright colors on two different occasions. They weren't too big and if I decided to cut them in to the salape' shape, then they would end up being really really small. When I get stuck, I usually ask my best friend, Laurina B. for advice and a fresh look or take on things. She said, "Why not just put a hole here. I like the way it looks natural." So, I owe her the following lago', or tear-shaped pendants.

I feel as if I cheated on these a bit though because I found them shaped the way they were. I didn't need to polish them and effectively, just poked a hole through and bound them with 100% cotton braiding cord. They turned up nicely though.

Laurina's lago' (of course she gets to keep one) is a gorgeous deep orange red Spondylus fragment. Its color is amazing and I bound it together with a small Spondylus salape' toggle.

As I was working on the other lago' pendant, my friend Bev C. called me saying that she was having a hard day. She was missing her family and life in California and she would have left that instant if she could to rejoin them. Even though I understood where she was coming from, I got a bit sad thinking that I was losing another friend. I take it pretty hard when people leave, I mean it's already hard to find good friends on a small island and when you do, there isn't always that permanence. I am usually pretty bad at corresponding too, so I lose out on them even more after friends have left.

Anyway, it took a lot to clear my mind off of the distractions so again I just focused on who Bev was to me while I finished this piece. Bev, thanks for being there for me. I know that you hear me complain a bit and you see the drama come out at times, but I've got to thank you for being there for me. You never judge me. You've also allowed me to live vicariously on your love life as you pursued a new relationship, while I was still pretty broken hearted and had a general disenchantment for relationships. No matter where you go, I will be there for you. I name this piece after you, Bev's lago' :

Bev's lago' is a bright orange Spondylus, and is naturally tear-shaped that I complimented with a small Spondylus salape' and a small sling stone shaped toggle.

I enjoyed "making" the lago' pendants and like Laurina said, I like the natural look on both of them. As always though, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I asked my friend Yerma R. what she thought of the design and she said, "It kind of looks like a dried piece of salmon. I mean, for people who might not know what it is." "Hahahaha!", I laughed so hard I almost had a tear.

Thank you for allowing me to share once again.

The Beachcomber

Spondylus bracelets: Palauan money, Cinnamon and the Tiger

I attempted to make some Spondylus bracelets and I’ll showcase what I’ve got so far on this post. I am still in the learning process when it comes to binding the pieces that I cut, and honestly it was a struggle in the beginning trying to figure out what kind of cord, or binding, or knots (everything really about binding a piece) I should use. Luckily, I stumbled upon some instructions here and there on how to do a square knot (flat) and a half knot (spiral), which seem to be sufficient at this time. I know that sooner or later, I will really have to expand my knowledge on cords, binding, and knotting. One day, I will learn how to use more traditional materials like kafu or pahong (Pandanus), niyok (coconut), and even pago (Hibiscus tiliaceus) fibers to bind my pieces. For now, I still have a few braiding cord made out of cotton and some nylon that I purchased in Wal-Mart the last time I was stateside.

I really wanted to keep my pieces closely resembling ancient Chamorro ornaments but my best friend said I should try experimenting with a few “not-so traditional pieces.” There are some people on Saipan that are big into making jewelry out of beads and they turn out real quality work that you can sell at high end stores on the island. But I really wanted an emphasis on a “traditional” flavor. As I see it, anyone can order bulk beading materials and get a book or video that gives you instructions on how to produce really good looking pieces. I am not knocking anyone who does this (in fact it’s a pretty neat hobby) but I think I will stick to utilizing things that I cut myself and not resort to store bought beads, etc.

This is the first bracelet that I attempted with a beautiful orange Spondylus centerpiece. The centerpiece reminds me of some Palauan money beads that are in the same shape and color. I then alternated two uncommon purple colored Spondylus salape’ disc beads, two orange ones, and closed the bracelet off with another purple salape’ bead. This was my first attempt on a bracelet form utilizing a square (flat) braid and a loop & toggle for the closure. I think I will rebind this another day, because the loop & toggle style on this bracelet makes it a little hard to put on by yourself. My best friend (who owns this piece now) struggles a few moments before she can get it on her wrist.

This next bracelet I call Cinnamon. It is made up of two orange Spondylus salape’ beads and the center bead is of an uncommon cinnamon colored Spondylus. This beauty is one of a kind!

My best friend saw some beads from a tiger cowry (Cypraea tigris) that were cut into squares in a gorgeous piece that was put together with some glass and plastic beads. She convinced me to experiment with this very non-traditional shape and I think the piece turned out attractively. I complained the whole time I was cutting it though saying things like, “This is not a traditional shape!” and telling her that the tiger cowry was probably over fished where it came from, and that if I wanted to be a “beader” then I should stop cutting my own pieces, and so on and so forth. So I ended up calling this piece Tigiri, the Chamorro word for tiger (from the Spanish word tigre, of course). Look closely and you’ll see Tigiri’s stripes.
Thank you again for allowing me to share.

The Beachcomber

Spondylus salape’: The classical shape

Disc beads made from the Spondylus or more commonly known as the spiny or thorny oyster, were used as ornaments by the ancient Chamorros of the Mariana Islands. Some archeologists believe that they were also used as money or salape’. Purportedly, the beads were greatly valued and were treated as heirlooms as well . Archeologists tell us that these beads were produced during the archaeological milestones of the Mariana Islands known as the Transitional Pre-Latte (AD 1 to AD 1000), the larger Latte Period (AD 1000 to AD 1521), and even through the Early Historic Period (in between AD 1521 to 1700).

The traditional or classical characteristic of the beads are disc shaped, orange in color, highly polished and without any surface blemish. Their dimensions are generally about 10 to 20 mm in diameter, 1 to 2.5 mm in width, and weighing about .5 to 2.5 grams. Most beads are biconically (two cones) drilled from both the front and the back surface but some are drilled completely through. Most beads have holes drilled in the center of the disc. There is a picture of some bead artifacts found on Tumon Bay, Guam here: http://historicguam.org/Historic%20Preservation%20Plan%20for%20Guam.pdf

Below is a picture of some ancient Spondylus disc beads housed in the CNMI Museum of History and Culture in Garapan, Saipan. The biggest disc bead here is about 51 mm in diameter. Look closely, and you’ll see that this particular bead has two holes to accommodate binding. Can you see the conically shaped drill hole of the top middle bead?



The next two pictures are also from the museum. It's a display collection of different ornamental artifacts collected by former United States Marine lieutenant and archeologist/naturalist Hans Hornbostle in the 1920s. According to the label, the artifacts were returned to Saipan by the Bishop Museum in Honolulu Hawaii in 1999.



After learning a little about the history of these artifacts and seeing how beautiful they are, I was hooked. I decided that I too would like to embark on a creative journey, much like the ancient people of my adoptive island home. So I “cut”, polish and bind my own versions of the Spondylus salape’ to give homage to the past and hopefully inspire others to discover for themselves the beauty of the ancient Chamorro culture.

This is a finished necklace and some bead discs that are ready to be bound. You can see that the Spondylus varies greatly in color which we shall explore on an upcoming post.


Finally, here are three more finished necklaces all in the classical shape of the Spondylus salape’ (the bead on the left is a toggle that closes the loop of a necklace. These are bound by beading cord of 100 % cotton.



Thank you for letting me share once again.

The Beachcomber

Hafa adai, everyone!

Hafa adai! Welcome to my blog and my first post. Being an avid beachcomber and general nature lover, I thought it would be nice to be able to share some of the things I see and discover in the wonderful islands of the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas.

I have lived on Saipan for 5 years now and there are still many things to do, see, experience and learn even though the island is just 20 km (12.5 mi) long and 9 km (5.5 mi) wide. Saipan is all about the things that enjoy so I hope I am able to share with you some interesting anecdotes on my interest in nature, history, health, or really just about anything and everything.

Blogging has become a favorite past time here on Saipan. I will mostly keep my blogging anonymous since I like my privacy very much. Please do the same for me and respect my privacy. I hope that this is something that I will find fun to do and fun for you to share in as well since I feel like there are somethings that I see or do that others may appreciate too.

So, Here we go. I'll try to make this entertaining. Thank you for allowing me to share!

One of my hobbies:

The ancient people of the Mariana Islands had an affinity for the Spondylus, or spiny oyster. The Chamorros made coin like beads with a hole (mainly in the middle) that they bound together and used as ornamentation. Some people believe they were also used for monetary purpose as salape' (money).

After seeing only a few artisans here on Saipan fashioning pendants and other ornaments made out of Spondylus and other natural materials, I decided to give it a try myself. Future posts will showcase the learning process that I go through in developing my new hobby, but ultimately, I hope that this inspires others to reclaim the lost arts of the past and so that knowledge of the ancient Chamorros is appreciated and not forgotten. I invite other artisans to share ideas and techniques within these blogs as well so that interest in the ancient arts grow and continue to be refined.

This is a picture of the first three Spondylus salape' pendants that I cut, polished and bound. Although you cannot see it in this picture, the necklaces are bound by a simple loop and small salape' toggles. I used hemp-like beading cord that are made of cotton. Finishing the first three gave me a lot of satisfaction since it was accomplished all through trial and error. I hope you like them too.