Coyote jaw rattle 1

This is one of three pictures of this project.

Materials: Coyote skull, leather, coyote fur, waxed linen cord, acrylic paint, wooden dowel rod

Dimensions: 21 1/2" long

Description: This is one of those experiments that turned out better than expected! I had wanted to make a skull rattle with the jaw attached, but went through several different designed before creating a working hinge out of materials I could work with and that would match the aesthetic of the overall piece. So this rattle not only has sound from the gracel in the brain case, but also from the jaws clacking open and shut! It's not the loudest rattle, but it is quite distinctive. I faux-aged the skull, and wrapped the handle in leather, adding leather tassels to the hinges of the skull. I then accented the leather with copper paint. The only other note to make on this rattle is that the bits of bone in the sinus cavity are a little delicate, and while I did my best to clean this guy's nose, occasionally a little bit of flaking from the sinuses occurs. This in no way affects the integrity of the rattle, but your 'yote may have a bit of a runny nose when you fist get it home! Overall, a really fantastic piece that will be most excellent for ritual work.