Ethiopian Necklace With Vintage Ethiopian Kitabe, Ethiopian Silver Beads, Rasta, African, Boho
This beautiful artisan Necklace was created from some Ethiopian Kitabe that I found while at an Ethiopian 14th Century Monastery in the North last year!
The necklace has hand made silver prayer beads from Ethiopia and small light and dark brown wooden beads. It closes with a hook.
The leather Kitabe is an old piece that was used for holding special prayers and blessings!
Ethiopian Orthodox Christians strongly believe in the protective and healing properties of scripture. Protective amulets also known as kitabes where made specifically for an individual for for a man's lifetime a focused reason and are scrolls encased and sewn into a leather pendant. The scroll was made of animal skin normally of goat or calf skin which has been worked in a series of processes into a parchment like material called vellum. The writing on the scroll is in hand made black and red paint or ink and is written in Ethiopic Ge'ez a language no longer used today except for religious purposes. The scrolls where inscribed by religious scribes, dabtaras (unordained clerics) or priest and contain Christian oriented prayers or stories or pertinent text from Ethiopian Christian manuscripts.
Sometimes pictures or diagrams are added to the scroll and almost always the baptismal name of the person the scroll is being made for is added. The leather amulet case is made from tanned leather and the scroll was either rolled or folded tightly before being wrapped and carefully sewn into the casing. Leather loops on top of the pendants where used to string the pendants for wear. Sometimes one or more pendants are worn for healing and or protective purposes.
A stunning statement necklace for men and women!
The kitabe from Ethiopia which measures about 3" by 1.25".
The necklace is 21"