Tribe: Navajo - Diné
New Mexico, USA
Measurement: appx 2 1/4” length, 1/4” wide
Weight: 12g combined
Why do they call it old pawn? It’s a term used for Native American jewelry, made and worn by Native Americans, typically not available for sale to the public. Old pawn pieces were taken to a Trading Post, where the items were pawned for a certain amount of money and then redeemed when the sum was paid back to the trading post. The jewelry that is considered "Old Pawn" is extremely rare and valuable to collectors, as a truly authentic piece of jewelry, made for Native American use. When the items were not redeemed they become what is known as dead pawn and available for sale.