My new Santa Fe Necklace! This is an apple coral and silver Santo Domingo necklace made by Wally Quintana. He and his wife, Theresa, were at Maria's selling some jewelry and we stopped to admire their beautiful wares and to chat. This silver piece in the center has the zia symbol and the little designs around the edges are the mountains in the four directions. Our friend here, Tom Fitzgerald, says that he loves the way he always knows where he is here because he can look around and see the mountains. At first it seems like you are just surrounded by mountains in general, and then you come to recognize the different ones and no matter if you can see the sun, you can tell where you are... there are the Jemez Mountains to the east, the Sangre de Christos to the west, the Sandias to the south and the badlands and Taos to the north.
Wally and Theresa are the ones who invited us to the pueblo's Buffalo Dance. We were in awe of the entire experience and grateful for the chance to be there. Now when I wear this necklace, I think of the pueblo, the dance and the warm people who welcomed us there. It is so personal to meet the people who make the jewelry or art that you buy. I really like this connection.