Ceremonial Necklaces
Accessories such as necklaces, earrings and armlets are worn by Ainu people as ornamentation and as protective amulets. Large necklaces are worn for religious ceremonies. These are fashioned with beads made of glass or semi-precious stones such as agate and amber, and often feature a large metal medallion. Most of the ornaments seen at the museum came from trade with Honshu and people on the Eurasian continent, with many of the medallions dating from the mid-seventeenth to eighteenth century. These medallions display close resemblances with those found at sites of the Nanai, an ethnic group living around the Amur River basin on the border of eastern Russia and northern China, indicating that there was trade with the continent.