This long strand of Navajo pearls are 26" in length with a 2" extension. Crafted by renown Navajo artist Rose Martin, she signs her name on a circular tag on the end of the necklace, This necklace is traditional in the way it is graduated from the center. The largest bead is approximately 25 mm and tapers down 7 times with both round & saucer beads to 4 mm. If your looking for a long set of Navajo Pearls then this is the one! Navajo Pearls are traditionally made sterling silver beads. Silver beads are a traditional art form for Diné silversmiths, and the beads have as many expressions as there are artisans.... Making the beads is a time-consuming process. Each bead begins with silver that has to be melted, rolled and cut. Sterling silver Is an alloy of silver containing 92.5% by weight of silver and 7.5% by weight of other metals, usually copper. The sterling silver standard has a minimum of 925 purity. Oxidized silver (black coloring in the silver) is a process that many jewelers use to give sterling silver a black patina. It gives the jewelry an antique or tarnished look. The process consists of taking clean sterling silver and using a chemical (liver of sulphur) to treat it to speed up the tarnishing effect.