TRIBAL SILVER

Containing between 95% and 99% of pure silver, Hill Tribe Silver ('tribal silver) components in MILLA-JOs' creations have a higher silver content than Sterling Silver which comes in at 92.5%. Because of its higher silver content, tribal silver doesn’t tarnish as easily as Sterling Silver. However, the higher silver content also makes it softer and more malleable thus easier to for craftsmen to work with by hand.

All of the Hill Tribe Silver (tribal silver) components are handmade by Karen ethnic tribes who reside throughout Thailand, Laos, China and Myanmar. These tribes are known as the Akha (Kaw), the Hmong (Meo), the Karen (Kariang, Yang), the Mien (Yeo), the Lahu (Mussur), and the Lisu (Lisaw). The tribal villages are scattered over an immense area. Some can only be approached on foot; others are serviced by primitive dirt (mud) roads.

Silver jewellery is different depending on the ethnic group. Hmong and Mien love massive jewellery; the Lisu add row after row while Lahu and Akha prefer to attach silver pieces to their clothes. Many of the jewellery is created after designs depicted on plants, animals or geometric patterns.

Some contemporary silver manufacturers claim that it is impossible to work with pure silver, yet ancient civilisations have done so for centuries, and continue to carry on this tradition. Almost without any moulding, all the jewels are made by cutting, striking, driving, twisting, hammering, braiding and welding, thanks to the mastery of ancient techniques.

Today a production village has around 60 people working in the manufacture of silver jewellery. Each silversmith employs around 5 to 10 workers, most often close family. Each family has its specialty and its models and each piece carries with it the unique imprint of the person who shaped it.

Thanks to traditional craftsmen the art of silver jewellery from the tribes of the golden triangle is a living art today and has not disappeared.