Living Jewelry

I have mixed feelings about this new interest in live jewelry. Poor little beetles! I'd prefer to find a dead one and make a mold than dress up a lil' creature with heavy weight on it's back.

It seems to stem from a Mayan tradition of wearing Maquech jewelry, "Maquech brooches have women swarming to pick up one of the hottest accessories: live beetles covered in small gems that are worn as jewelry. The pet-cessories may seem shocking to some, but they're actually part of a centuries-old tradition that stems from the Mayans. When the artists glue small, colorful gems onto the bugs, they also frequently add bits of gold trim chain, attaching a clip that can be used to wear the beetle on clothing" -Huffington Post

What do you think?

Living jewelry. Tenebrionid beetle.

Courtesy Virginia Scott, Entomology Section,
University of Colorado Museum of Natural History

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