Known as tangiwai to the Maori, meaning tear-water, bowenite is a stone most often associated with funereal jewellery in Maori tradition. However, many Maori communities actually prized it even more than nephrite jade for its uses in jewellery. And when the piece demonstrates the strong colour and rippling silvery chatoyancy seen in pieces like this, it's not hard to see why.
 
Measuring in at 48mm long and 37mm wide at its widest point, this rei niho or tooth-form pendant sports a deep blue-green base hue with patches of lighter green colour and waves of rippling chatoyancy: the appearance of the stone moving internally like flowing water as the stone is rolled from side to side. A complex yet inexpensive piece for the connoisseur of the unusual.