Prusakowski quickly explains that b-o-l-a is the tie and b-o-l-o is a knife, showing that not everyone even agrees on the spelling. They've also been called string, Texas, lariat and goucho ties, and piggin necklets.

"It's consistent," said Prusakowski, 77, of the tie's popularity. "What you do get is a lot of people who come from the East and Mideast, and they want to be cowboys. They start wearing bola ties. They find it's much easier and much more comfortable."

Texas also designated the bolo as state tie in 2007.

The Heard has 350 bolo ties on display, with the exhibit running through September 2012.

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Digital access or digital and print delivery.information vacuum thus created, the only certainty is that three Ukrainians are being held prisoner with Russia claiming that they were involved in some kind of ‘acts of sabotage’ in Russian-occupied Crimea.

There is no evidence or satellite footage to back Russia’s allegations about supposed ‘attacks’, only videoed ‘confessions’ from each of the three men. None of the men has been seen publicly since. Two of them – Yevhen Panov and Andriy Zakhtei – are being prevented from seeing proper lawyers, while nothing at all has been heard from the third – Ridvan Suleimanov. According to his family, he had been seized three weeks before the alleged ‘attacks’.

There may also be other men imprisoned, as was initially claimed. At a press conference with Panov’s brother Ihor Kotelyanets on Sept