Ancient Times (pre-900 CE)

Earliest jewelry found dates to Neolithic period - made of stones, bones, teeth and shells

Beads and pendants emerge, made from materials like agate, carnelian, nephrite

Bronze casting used for bangles, rings, anklets

Pre-Colonial Era (900 CE - 1521)

Earliest gold jewelry dates to around 900-1300 CE

Intricate goldworks produced like lingling-o, tapuy, palipik

Ibaloi craft elaborate gold death masks

Head hunters produce prestige gold mortars

Boar tusk necklaces denote rank and valor among male warriors

Spanish Colonial Era (1521-1898)

Spanish introduce new tools and techniques like lost-wax, soldering, filigree

Materials like coral, glass beads and pearls incorporated

Old gold mines reopened to satisfy colonial demands

Tribes retain indigenous styles and meanings

Boar tusk necklaces continue to be integral to male prestige

American Colonial Era (1898-1946)

Americans establish Benguet Consolidated Mining in 1903 for gold extraction

Kalinga resist colonists taking ancestral gold fields

Foreign traders introduce modern tools like anvils, pliers

New jewelry schools set up by Americans and Europeans

Tusk necklaces persist as symbols of masculinity

WWII and Independence (1946-1970s)

Disruptions of WWII lead to decline in jewelry production

Revival sees demand for indigenous jewelry by tourists

Modern tools like torches adopted by jewelers

Schools revived to reclaim techniques lost in WWII

Tusk necklaces re-emerge proudly at cultural events

Contemporary (1970s-present)

High-karat gold preferred for cultural significance

New materials like titanium experimented with

Designs incorporate pre-colonial motifs

Tourism drives market for handcrafted ethnic jewelry

Balance of tradition and innovation sought

Tusk necklaces remain pillars of indigenous identity