Opossum Rib Bone Earrings | Instinct & Endurance

Description
Locally harvested opossum ribs, wire wrapped in copper. A rib is a good bone to wear: it is a curve rather than a point, and it came from the part of the animal that does the breathing.

The Virginia opossum is the only marsupial living north of Mexico. Its family came up from South America once the Isthmus of Panama closed around three million years ago, and it has pushed its range further north every decade since. That is a better association than cleverness: this is an animal built for enduring rather than for winning.

Playing dead is the famous part and it is worth knowing it is involuntary. The animal does not decide to do it. It is a catatonic stress reflex complete with a smell of decay, and it works because most predators want a kill they made themselves.

How to Wear It

• Wear them through a stretch you are trying to outlast rather than win.
• Bone is porous. Keep them dry and away from perfume.
• Copper wrap will darken with wear. That is the metal, not a fault.

Wear It With
See the small pair, the Opossum bone necklace and browse bone jewelry.

Locally harvested opossum bone from a ten acre property in Texas, wire wrapped in copper. Every rib is a different size and curve, so no two pairs match.