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Pocahontas' earrings on display in London
Associated Press
Published June 11, 2005
LONDON - A pair of mussel shell earrings set in silver and believed to be among the only surviving possessions of legendary American Indian princess Pocahontas went on display at a London museum Friday in their first public showing since 1907.
Each earring is formed of a double mussel-shell, the rare white kind found on the eastern shore of the Bering Strait. They are set in silver rims, inlaid with mother-of-pearl, and are worth approximately $500,000.
Pocahontas, daughter of Chief Powhatan of the Algonquin Nation, gained fame for keeping peace and serving as an "ambassador" between American Indians and British settlers.
By legend, she saved Capt. John Smith from execution in 1607 before being captured by the English in 1612. She converted to Christianity in 1613 and married tobacco planter John Rolfe a year later.
The earrings were handed down in the Rolfe family and now belong to the Association for Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.
The earrings were sent from Virginia for the exhibition at the Museum of Docklands marking the upcoming 400th anniversary of the first permanent British settlement in America at Jamestown, Va.
[Last modified June 11, 2005, 00:26:12]
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