Flight of the Raven King...

A few months ago, I had started to listen to a book on tape called, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke. One of the characters mentioned in the book is a figure called the Raven King. Apparently he was one of the strongest and most powerful magicians in England. Another of the characters, Vinculus, mentions a prophecy about how there is a language written in the barren branches on the trees and that no one will be able to read it. When I took this photo of the raven outside our window, I thought instantly of this story.

Ravens symbolize many things in different cultures. Native American tradition honors the raven as a symbol of courage and of magical guidance. The Arab culture calls the raven Abu Zajir which means "Father of Omens." They are seen as oracular birds, used in divination. They are seen as symbols of death, life, the sun, magic, shapeshifting, and tricksters. Their symbology is rich and diverse and provided a wealth of information that helped inspire this necklace.

Materials:

1 Sterling Silver Toggle
59 Thai silver 4 - 6mm irregularly shaped spacers
30 Volcanic Stone Rondelles
6 Faceted Dark rutilated quartz
10 Gold Crimps
56 Silver 2mm cornerless cubes
1 Metal 3" twig pendant
1 20 X 25mm speckled riverstone
1 Faceted Dark rutilated quartz briolette
1 ceramic focal bead
1 small rectangular ceramic pendant
Beading wire
Sterling Silver and Copper Wire


Tools:
Wire cutters
Crimping pliers
Round-nose pliers
Chain-nose pliers

Step 1: Cut 24" medium beading wire, attaching one end to the clasp with 2 crimp tubes.
Step 2: String 3 irregular Thai silver spacers, 1 volcanic stone, 1 silver. Alternating this pattern a total of 15 times.
Step 3: String Ceramic Focal bead.
Step 4: Repeat Step 2, reversing the stringing sequence for the other side.
Step 5: Attach loose beading wire with 2 gold crimp tubes to other part of silver toggle.
Step 6: Wire wrap riverstone, 1 gold bead, 1 Thai silver, 1 gold bead, creating a dangle. Repeat for ceramic pendant.
Step 7: Cut 6" fine beading wire. With a crimp, attach it to the main necklace, right before the focal bead. (This will also help tighten any loose tension.)
Step 8: String 13 cornerless cubes, 3 Thai irregular spacer beads, 9 cornerless cubes, riverstone dangle, 9 cornerless cubes, twig pendant, ceramic bead dangle, 9 cornerless cubes, and pass back through the 3 Thai irregular spacer beads featured earlier in this step, creating an enclosed loop. String 13 more cornerless cubes and a crimp; attach to the other side of the main ceramic focal bead.
Step 9: Using 2.5" of copper wire, wire wrap 1 rutilated quartz briolette to the twig pendant.

Finished Size: 20"


Detail of focal piece.


Detail of back of focal bead.

Resources: Sterling Silver Toggle, Thai Silver, Cornerless Cubes: Saki Silver. Rutilated Quartz and Volcanic Stone: Talisman Associates Inc. Twig Pendant: Scattered Light Jewelry. Focal Ceramic Bead: Raven's Journey International. Riverstone: WordStones. Gold beads: Jane's Fibers. Crimp Tubes: Fusionbeads.com. Rectangular Ceramic Pendant: Marsha Neal Studio.