Sunday, November 9, 2008

Spiral Hand Ceramic Pendant


Made with love on Grizzly Mountain!

This Spiral Hand pendant has been glazed with a dark Chili Pepper colored glaze. No two glazed pieces ever come out of the kiln the same, so each hand carved piece is truly unique.

The spiral hand symbol can mean many things to many people. To some, it's seen as a symbol of universal healing energy, to others, a protective symbol to ward off evil.

Oregon Petroglyph Ceramic Pendant

Studying ancient cultures is a hobby of mine and I like to use their symbols in my pieces. This petroglyph is located in Harney county Oregon. He/she has been carved into earthenware clay and glazed to have the appearance of an aged rock.

Spiral of Life

This large spiral pendant has been glazed with a beautiful blue glaze. No two glazed pieces ever come out of the kiln the same, so each hand carved piece is truly unique.

**What does the Spiral symbol mean?**

According to Wikipedia, the spiral plays a certain role in symbolism, and appears in megalithic art, notably in the Newgrange tomb or in many Galician petroglyphs such as the one in Mogor.

While scholars are still debating the subject, there is a growing acceptance that the simple spiral, when found in Chinese art, is an early symbol for the sun. Roof tiles dating back to the Tang Dynasty with this symbol have been found west of the ancient city of Chang'an (modern-day Xian).

The spiral is the most ancient symbol found on every civilized continent. Due to its appearance at burial sites across the globe, the spiral most likely represented the "life-death-rebirth" cycle. Similarly, the spiral symbolized the sun, as ancient people thought the sun was born each morning, died each night, and was reborn the next morning.

The study of spirals in nature have a long history, Christopher Wren observed that many shells form a logarithmic spiral. Jan Swammerdam observed the common mathematical characteristics of a wide range of shells from Helix to Spirula and Henry Nottidge Moseley described the mathematics of univalve shells. D’Arcy Wentworth Thompson's On Growth and Form gives extensive treatment to these spirals. He describes how shells are formed by rotating a closed curve around a fixed axis, the shape of the curve remains fixed but its size grows in a geometric progression. In some shell such as Nautilus and ammonites the generating curve revolves in a plane pirpendicular to the axis and the shell will form a planer discoid shape. In others it follows a skew path forming a helico-spiral pattern.

Thompson also studied spirals occurring in horns, teeth, claws and plants.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Tiny Turquoise Earrings


These tiny turquoise earrings were made with the dainty earring lovers in mind!

The kidney shaped ear wires are made from vintage copper and measure about 1 1/2 inches in length. The tiny turquoise beads and copper spacer drop measures about 1/2 inch.

These and other earrings can be found in my Good Dirt Jewelry shop!

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Norse Rune Ceramic Pendants

Made with love on Grizzly Mountain!

I created this EIHWAZ rune from earthenware clay. It has been glazed with a rich blue glaze. No two pieces come out of the kiln the same! This pendant hangs from an 18 inch ball chain, which can be easily removed if you have a favorite chain you prefer to use.

The EIHWAZ rune, symbolizes protection, strength, reliability and enlightenment.

Whether you are a practicing Druid, or just love the art of ancient traditions, the Runic pendants found in my Good Dirt Jewelry shop, would be a unique addition to your collection.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

"The Meeting" Celtic Ceramic Pendant


Jo created this Celtic inspired "The Meeting" from earthenware clay. It measures about 1 1/2" square. It has been accented with a very old Tibetan Yak bone bead that has been inlayed with copper. The pendant has been glazed to make it look like an ancient relic. 

This item ships for FREE and includes a gift box!

There's No Place Like Home!


We are back home safe and sound from our weekend show in Yachats.  I have returned several of the ceramic pendants that I took to our show to my Good Dirt Jewelry Shop and will try to get some new ones photographed tomorrow.