This is an antique silver metal bead rosary with beautiful wear and patina. This rosary features an attached vintage reliquary pocket shrine box with a piece of saree from a pilgrimage to India that has been rubbed with grave dirt and blessed with sacred waters of the Ganges River—collected at the most holy cremation grounds in Varanasi. The shrine box also has a dried rose petal, petals of dried marigolds, and a silver Santa Muerte charm figure. It includes a rusty metal rose connector, a bone carved skull, 5 traditional style rosary beads made with real rose petals. The rose petal beads are rough to start, but will naturally smooth out over time and with handling and still smell of roses. This rosary also features a hand forged scythe pendant, made custom for this rosary.

18 inches.

Mary Henlin (b. 1981) is a California-born artist who attended the Academy of Art in San Francisco where she studied Fine Art Photography.

She currently resides in Portland, Oregon where she creates art that walks a tightrope between the breathtaking beauty of Sacred Divinity intermingled with the dystopian elements of society that are unfolding daily.

Her combination is so unique that her pieces invoke a reverence, an experience of true Grace.

Mary spent time living in Southern California in the late 90s which inspired her with the rich mixture of Catholic folk art, Mexican street art and visits to the local Botanica that housed a dazzling full room shrine to Santa Muerte. She began her dance with the divine at a young age, collecting statues and creating altar and shrine art.

Her current work started as an art and photo project. She hand made Mary statues and placed them around the city in sacred spots and natural altars. She enjoys creating a spark of mystical transcendence in an otherwise indifferent landscape, and soon others wanted her to make statues for them to leave around on trips or put on their altar. Her art has continued to evolve into the Mysteries of Mary and the Divine Feminine as an increased requirement for powerful female archetypes and dark goddesses has emerged.

Her visionary eye seems divinely guided to create something sacred, something venerated and beautiful in a world of uncertainty. This is no ordinary art. Her statues, altars and shrines are alive with the stream of pure collective consciousness that connects us all. Her pieces are visceral and experiential.

You can find Mary Henlin’s art on altars and sacred spaces around the world.