Iron bracelet (iste'~ik).
Iron bracelets (iste'~ik) like this one are not often worn today -beaded bracelets are more common- whereas in the past they were the most popular form of jewellery. Iron bracelets can also serve another purpose, far removed from their role as jewellery: in the hands of someone gifted with the power to communicate with the ancestors or fairy-like biengs called suchi, an iron bracelet suspended on a length of woollen yarn can act as a divining tool, a technique called iste'~ik karik. The diviner looks at the bracelet as it hangs, gently rotating on its yarn whilst discussing a patient’s malady with a deceased ancestor. By communicating with the dead or the suchi in this way the malady can be cured.
