Miao Spirit Lock or Padlock Pendant

A silver lock with a pair of curling scrolls instead of a shackle.

This spirit lock or padlock pendant is Miao (Hmong), from Thailand, and is made of silver. Silver locks are worn by Hmong children and adults and are generally understood as a way to keep a person's spirit safe. The body is a trapezoid, bordered with beaded edging and crossed by ridged diagonal bars with raised round studs. Above it, a wire loop swells into two wide arcs, each ending in a tight spiral. A horizontal band divides the lock into two parts. It is 2.75 inches long and 2 high.

A lock that asks, politely, for good fortune to stay.