Designed as a sibling to our first iterations of the Datura Moth collection, this version is sculpted with a more weathered and aged look to represent a creature at the end of its journey. Both moths and Datura blooms live for just a few days to a week, bursting forth from tightly furled spaces to exist briefly and beautifully, and mostly at night. I love the idea of an aged, "elder" companion, teeming with wisdom as it spirals down to return to the soil. & yet here, its return is suspended in a stasis of silver, immortal and yours forever, to be imbued with your story, your memories. As a talisman of resilience and transformation under pressure, this jewel speaks to these strange times; its my hope this newest iteration in our moth library will bring comfort, protection and inspiration to you. 

Datura stramonium ( with a species of 9-14 variations ), also known as Jimson weed, Thorn apple and Devil’s Trumpet, is a flowering that originated in the Americas and spread across the seas. Much like other members of the solanaceae family, it is highly toxic in large doses. This includes all parts of it, from its gorgeous trumpet like flowers, to its toothy leaves, its roots and its infamous inky black seeds which are incased in spiky seed pods. In smaller doses, it has been used in the past as healing salves for inflammation and pain, while also being utilized in folk magic to induce visionary and hallucinogenic states. Among tribes with shamanic practices, Datura was considered sacred and can be found in cave paintings and on pre-historic ceramics, suggesting its use during these times. 

One of the attributes of this plant that drew me to it aside from its beauty and folklore, is its ability to grow alongside the edges of places, even here in the city. Its seeds disperse when its pods dry and crack open and I’ve witnessed it grow from cracks in the sidewalk, through holes in chain link fences, abundantly in between buildings and in other abandoned empty spaces in the city where such beauty seems out of place. It is seemingly weed like in nature and yet in other landscapes, it is planted with care as an ornamental despite its poisonous properties. 

I’ve been amazed at the thick roots of one bush that grew wild in an abandoned space between two buildings before it was cut down, its seeds freckling the earth as if to say, you haven’t truly destroyed me. Its hardiness in the face of a gritty landscape and Phoenix like regenerative qualities endears me to it as much as its beauty and magical properties. 

Moon colored, Datura unfurls and opens at night and is therefore pollinated by moths, Sphinx moths in particular, who hover around its blooms like hummingbirds, sipping from them with their long tongues. I witnessed this for the first time last summer, while visiting one plant close to my home with a friend from out of town near where I live in a fairly industrial part of the city. We watched the moth drink from bloom to bloom in wonder in the hot summer night air until it moved on. It felt both strange and wonderful to witness and I don’t know why it surprised me to see; if there are flowers thriving in the city, surely there could be Sphinx moths ?

This fortuitous moment inspired the jewel on offer here : a hybrid creature, a moth that is a Datura, a Datura that is a moth. Its sinuous body is meant to evoke the rippling petals of the Datura flower in bloom while also retaining the gesture and features of a moth, albeit one born from dreams rather than natural history. 

Moths have long been a creature I’ve used in the library of my personal symbology within BloodMilk. As a symbol of transformation: beginning their lives as caterpillars, they gorge themselves before outgrowing their exoskeletons. They will sometimes shed their skins ( like a snake ! ) up to five times with their final time forming its chrysalis or pupa. ( Find our Sphinx Chrysalis jewel here ). This is the fascinating / magical part for me: their caterpillar bodies will begin to disintegrate into a kind of jelly yet its believed they retain some of their memories as their new body moth body forms in the velvety dark protection of its cocoon. Once its ready to emerge, it begins to break free and its struggle to release itself also helps pump fluid and energy into its wings. Moth signifies, a period of patience, surrender and profound transformation or awakening through introspection. Just like Datura, Moth is linked to the Unseen world and many feel that moths are messengers from the spirit world, bringing signs from their beloved dead to them.

*Details* :

- 44 mm wide

- 39 mm from top to bottom

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

- Second to last image shows this ring with the Datura Luna Moth Wing Earrings which can be found HERE

- Last image shows this ring with the Large Datura Luna Moth ring which can be found HERE

***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.