Set of Three

White brass & leather

Ainu Kotan stud buttons - 1 inch square

These stud buttons feature a motif called Sik noka, a pattern of eyes that are understood as protective because they lend the wearer the ability to see malevolent beings and forces around them.  These 'eyes' ward off evil in this way.  These eye motifs are often used in conjunction with spirals and thorns that are also used to protect the wearer. Jul Designs has called this stud button motif Kotan, which means village, because it also looks a bit like the thatched roofs of traditional house forms.  This is an association I see that is not necessarily coming directly from an Ainu visual vocabulary.