Miao Spirit Lock or Padlock Pendant

A tapered plate with four floral panels and wire arms like butterfly wings.

This silver spirit lock or padlock pendant is Miao (Hmong), from Thailand. Locks worn as pendants are generally understood in Miao and Hmong custom as charms that hold a child's spirit to the body and ward off harm. Flared trapezoid plate with a slightly dished lower edge, engraved with four small floral clusters divided by a central cross. Dotted wire loops arc upward in S curves around two spirals. Surface is pale with faint scratches. It is 2.1 inches long and 2.1 high.

Every inch decorated, because restraint was never on the menu.