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Blood Milk Jewels

As Above, So Below Necklace. Rose Quartz. * Limited *

$350.00

Blood Milk Jewels

As Above, So Below Necklace. Rose Quartz. * Limited *

$350.00

IMPORTANT: This jewel is limited and we are unsure if they'll be available again in the future. We recommend Express Shipping with signature required upon delivery to best ensure it arrives safely in your hands. 

PLEASE NOTE : This necklace will be created with an 18" bar link chain. If you desire a different chain length, it's important that you email us immediately after placing your order. 

Because these stones are limited, we are not able to accommodate any requests for specific stone preferences.

Two petite rose quartz trillions are set in opposing directions within a frame of life cast bat bones, a visual talisman of As Above, So Below.

The maxim ‘As above, so below’ is attributed to The Emerald Tablet, a hermetic text that became important to alchemists seeking the ‘philosopher’s stone’ to create gold from base metals ( see: Carl Jung’s psychological alchemy, in which the gold is a metaphor for the state of being whole ). Attributed to Hermes, it has roots as a 8th/ 9th century Arabic text, but was also translated in Latin. 

The phrase within the text is longer than its modern succinct version : “Tis true without lying, certain and most true. That which is below is like that which is above and that which is above is like that which is below to do the miracle of one only thing.” 

This maxim also appears slipped into the Bible via the book of Matthew and forever known as lines in the ‘Our Father’ prayer: 'Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven’.

A visual expression of this idea is found in the Pixie Colman Smith/Rider-Waite tarot deck on ‘The Magician’ card; a figure stands behind an altar pointing both upwards and downwards simultaneously, illustrating that there is a correspondence between realms, an eternal pairing and interconnectedness amongst all things.

In terms of astrology, this maxim is applied to how celestial bodies can affect our human ones as well as the landscape; for example the zodiac or how the moon pulls on the tides. 

I also believe it is linked to Einstein’s ‘Spooky action at a distance’, in which, despite the distance, ( even light years away), entangled particles will share the same fate. Something about this has always interested the romantic in me, the idea of being entwined with a person so deeply that even in absence there are profound tethers ( see: Only Lovers Life Alive ). I like thinking of how these phrases can be adapted into how our inner worlds are reflected in the outer world and vice versa. We are the immense mystery of the stars, as well as ancient glacial silt, we are connected to each other, strangers and loved ones alike. 

Bats:

Bats and their cast wing and leg bones have long been a component I’ve used in my visual library as a way of creating a personal visual language. As nocturnal creatures, I feel a kinship with their natural predilection for the night time hours, but I’m also interested in how they use sonar to ‘see’, how as a metaphor bats as liminal creatures also remind us to look closer with our other senses, a way of ‘seeing the unseen.’ It’s my hope and intention that pairing them with other chthonic imagery and myth further adds to the visual meaning I’m aiming for, creating a collage of personal ideas while also tethering these physical jeweled objects to the spirit of the bat ( and other natural objects in the case of other jewels in my collection ) and to the spirit of the myths I’m invoking.

*Details* :

- 19 mm wide 

- 34 mm from top to bottom  

- Solid sterling silver: oxidized to achieve a stormy gray. Hand polished to reveal the luminous silver tones beneath.  

- Set with two 8 x 8 mm rose quartz trillion gemstones

Rose Quartz: 

According to fossil evidence, Rose Quartz, known the world over for its beautiful pink coloring, is at least 35 million years old, with records dating back to 600 B.C.. During that time, it was given amongst lovers, family and friends as love tokens. It was also used in beauty rituals as far back as Ancient Egypt where evidence of it as facial masks has been found in tombs amongst grave goods. Metaphysically, it is best known as the master 'love stone', used in love spells, helpful in matters of self-confidence, anger, disappointment, and seemingly always mentioned in tandem with "healing" - a word so dense with promise it makes me both hopeful and strangely put off. I feel a bit lonely in my discomfort; I've never been one to only seek beauty in its traditional forms and it seems like Rose Quartz is the fairest of them all -the glittering prom queen who about to have a bucket of blood poured on her.

My favorite lore around this stone concerns the Goddesses Isis and Aphrodite / Venus, which are all connected by similar attributes and were conjoined when the Romans annexed Egypt. The Egyptian Goddess Isis, one of the most revered deities over time, is believed to have used Rose Quartz "maintain her eternal youth and divine beauty" and therefore influenced the beauty culture ( see above ) in ancient times. Aphrodite is the Greek iteration of Venus, with whom she is often syncretized - sharing many overlapping traits: such as her beauty, passion and pleasure, love, and fertility. Each Goddess was considered to be a standard of ideal beauty and representative of love, yet also each was associated with the enemy of love - death. Isis, in a gruesome yet romantic gesture, collected the disembodied pieces of her murdered brother/husband Osiris, and resurrected him - becoming impregnated with Horus simultaneously. This myth was revered in Ancient Egypt, fertility rituals around Osiris' resurrection abounded.

For the Greeks, one of the most popular myths centering Aphrodite is also a genesis tale for Rose Quartz in and of itself : Aphrodite fell in love with the beautiful mortal Adonis who was killed by a wild boar ( perhaps a jealous Ares in disguise, or sent by Artemis as punishment ). As he lay dying in the forest, Aphrodite came to his side, herself also bleeding after becoming tangled and wounded in a bramble bush. Their co-mingled blood is thought to have fallen on Quartz, ever after giving Rose Quartz is pink hue. Adonis, like Osiris, was also resurrected in some tellings and his tale was also associated with grieving rituals in connection to the natural cycles of life.

Personally, I've struggled both with writing about Rose Quartz as well as pairing it with my jewelry. It's a stone that has long been deeply connected with the romantic aspects of love, healing, forgiveness, beauty and well-being - but for me, I've shied away or have had discomfort with each of these notions and descriptors. Each of them has also been, for me, tangled up with grief and death - shadow feelings. However, while I think Rose Quartz often lacks its shadow in popular descriptions of it - I think it's powerful for these exact reasons. As much as it is beautiful, it is often turned to as a balm during our worst moments - the ugly and horrific times of heart brokenness; representing our hearts in all their nuance - capable of the beauty of love but also the madness of loss. In this way, it illustrates the tensions between beauty and horror I unconsciously & consciously seek in everything. It is a phoenix, burning down like the Tower into ashes but also comforts us while we rise from the rubble. It is a fierce shield that guards us, but it is also has a soothing gentleness. In this way each Rose Quartz jewel carries a dual aspect of 'psychic armor' both the energies and medicines of the snakes and bats that form the gloomy silver settings of the jewels, and Rose Quartz, a beautiful balm that assists us during our darkness moments, a reminder of the sweet-bitterness of being alive on this timeline.’

These jewels are hand cut and therefore may have very slight differences in size and may have small signs of the carver's hands along the edges. These are not fabricated by a machine, they are made by hand and therefore aren't uniformly perfect. The photographs accurately portray the quality of the stones and the cuts. 

***IMPORTANT***

This jewel is handmade to order, just for you, with care and focus. Please allow approximately 6-8 weeks for creation before shipping.                   

Visit the Policy Page to make an educated and informed purchase HERE.

If you have further questions, we are always here to serve you in a kind and timely manner: via info@bloodmilkjewels.com