Harman Patil (Editor)

Guanín (Taíno)

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In the Taino culture of the Antilles, a guanín (pronounced gua-NIN) meaning "The Noble of Nobles" was a badge of honor of tribal leadership and authority, worn by the Caciques (chiefs) and by the Nitaino (nobility). It was a small disc that could be worn around the neck or some other part of the body. The brightness of the metal indicated that the leader had a connection with spiritual powers.

It was made of a mixture of gold and copper. Flakes of gold were extracted from rivers, and pounded with rocks until they merged. The origin of smelting the gold with copper is not clear.

References

Guanín (Taíno) Wikipedia