It's All About the Rocks

Don't get me wrong here—the sterling work is where the real artistry comes in. But closer examination of Native American works show that the stone was the inspiration for the piece, and the sterling work is often designed around it. This is the case when a stone 'speaks' to the artisan.

Certain mines produce stones that are soft, yet stable, and are easily carved to fit into a particular style of jewelry. Zuni Petit Point and Needle Point pieces are almost exclusively done using Sleeping Beauty mine stones for this reason. Their sky blue color and absence of matrix make for some pretty amazing displays.

Many mines produced for a short period and some rendered stones that are easily identified, but there are so many mines that have been in operation for decades, the different turquoise veins that are tapped will often have stones of drastically varying characteristics. This can make stone identification difficult as one mine will produce stones very similar to another.

There are a few exceptions; turquoise from the Lander Blue mine, the #8 mine, the Bisbee mine and a few others, have an unmistakable matrix and color as the veins of the mine continually produce turquoise of the same look and quality. The desire for this type of stone is high, with Lander Blue being the most expensive turquoise on the market due to the low production rate of the mine and the unusual matrix and color of the stones. As you might guess, we don't find a lot of Lander pieces, but when we do, they sell very quickly.

Turquoise is such a wonderful and time honored offering from the earth, its importance in Native American works is highly significant, and when a piece is true to the stone, it increases its value considerably. We see a lot of work and it's always disappointing to see sterling work that was obviously done with great care, only to have an inferior stone slapped into it. But turquoise prices, especially for high-grade stones, have proven prohibitive to artisan's that produce a lot of work. It's the pieces that are done by artisans with little concern for mass production that invariably incorporate quality stones. These are the pieces we present on the website.

Stone selection is a major factor in the pieces we offer, and turquoise that has been treated / stabilized is shied away from—its color and matrix are no longer natural and it gives the stones a plastic appearance. The stabilization process became popular in the 1950s as a way to offer more stones to the jewelry manufacturing industry—the process was used on inferior grade materials that were prone to breaking, and its still being done today, with the stones being incorporated into mass produced jewelry.

We do the best we can when identifying natural turquoise stones, and will not give a definitive identification unless we're certain of their origin, which is often the case. There are just too many variations produced by a single source to say with absolute certainty in some instances, and misleading our buyers is simply not an option. The pieces we offer incorporate superior stones, many being gem quality, from high-grade sources. There's just no reason to do it any other way.

Old Pawn Native American Handcrafted Jewelry

“Old Pawn” is a designation given to pieces that weren't necessarily left at a pawn shop and never claimed, although it's often the case. There are construction techniques and design styles that will often be labeled as Old Pawn, and these are, more often than not, pieces made before the 1950s.

WWII saw a lot of Native Americans in the armed forces, and when they returned home they brought a plethora of tools with them that changed how jewelry was made. Precision instruments that either took the place of doing things by hand or made it considerably easier to craft works in a more refined way as well as faster. Old techniques were abandoned by many of the Native silversmiths yet others stuck with their methods as tradition played a big role in creating their works of art.

Old Pawn is the most sought after genre of the art form and many artisans are returning to traditional techniques as it gives the jewelry a feel of authenticity that's hard to achieve without getting your hands dirty, so to speak. This Kirk Smith Navajo Squash Blossom Necklace was made sometime in the 1990s and is very traditional in it's design and construction. This set of Earrings by contemporary Navajo artisan Alex Sanchez also pays tribute to Old Pawn jewelry—this is something Sanchez kind of dabbles in--much of his work is quite contemporary, but he does fantastic work when adhering to tradition.

We've acquired some impressive Old Pawn works as of late, great examples of the art form from different southwestern tribes. This Navajo Beaded Necklace with it's amazing turquoise stone and sterling work is hand made right down to the clasp. This Navajo Choker is also handcrafted with each sterling bead being slightly different from the others. It's still on it's original hemp string and the clasp is hand made on this one as well. This set of Navajo Dangle earrings is pretty remarkable; handcrafted sterling beads, the wires connecting the elements are encased in sterling tubes and the ear wires are handcrafted.

Our Bolo Tie collection has grown considerably in the last month with some Old Pawn pieces being acquired. This Navajo Repousse and turquoise bolo is based on concho belt designs from the 1930s and 40s. The handcrafted nature of this piece is undeniable and it's bold design is well executed using primitive tools. Zuni stone to stone inlay relies heavily on the lapidary skills of the artisan and this Old Pawn Zuni bolo tie is a stellar example. Not only was the artisan skilled in the lapidary field but was obviously an accomplished silversmith as well—the sterling lanyard tips are handcrafted specially for this piece. Many Navajo artisans didn't adopt lapidary work right away and the rough turquoise stones on this Navajo shallow shadowbox bolo are held in place with specially hand cut sterling bezels—the look is unique and you just don't see it very often. The sterling lanyard tips are handcrafted on this bolo too, and incorporate a wave design—again, very unique.

Stellar older works are appearing on the website with regularity and I couldn't be more pleased. Having the capacity to represent the Native American art form in it's finest and most traditional genre is what I strive for. Were I to list all the Old Pawn works available on the website, this would turn into a novel. This video features several of our Old Pawn pieces.

Put the Focus on the Details

When considering the time involved in the creation of Native American Artisan Jewelry there are indications on vintage pieces, as well as pieces done by certain contemporary artisans, that time was of no consequence. This is most evident on pieces that were created by a Native American FOR a Native American.

Although Navajo sterling overlay is available, yet not very common, some early pieces really stand out in the sweat equity department. This vintage cuff bracelet by unknown artisan “Bluehorse” bears scrutiny. If you'll notice the top and bottom bands are a single, hand cut piece of sterling, but each of the triangle elements in the center two rows were individually placed; each is slightly different, the pattern doesn't match up exactly as Bluehorse didn't use a “jig” to create the floating triangles—each was cut by hand, eye-balling the shapes as they were cut. The bottom band with the triangle elements varies considerably as well. This sort of eye-to-hand coordination, barring the use of measurement tools, give these time intensive pieces character that is missing in many cases.

This set of Old Pawn Navajo sterling dangle earrings is one of the best examples of Native American craftsmanship currently in the collection. When I acquired them it was obvious they are completely hand made, from the ear wires to the sterling beads. What I didn't notice until I examined them closely, is that each of the wires that connect the elements is encased in a tiny sterling cylinder. How this was accomplished I can't venture a guess, but the detail on this small a scale is a testament to the unknown Navajo Artisan's dedication to creating a work of art with little to no consideration for the time required. The artistic content of the finished piece, even though the naked eye won't be privy to it, is all that was on the artisan's mind. The mind boggles at how those minuscule cylinders were created.

I avoided Zuni Chip inlay work for many years, as I had seen some pieces that were obviously thrown together; the stone chips have to be given considerable attention as per size and shape, as when chip inlay, or as it's sometimes called “tweezer inlay,” is created, it's like making a jig-saw puzzle with nothing to refer to as you place the chips into the recesses. A light came on a few years ago when I started seeing some chip inlay that had obviously been done with great care, again with little regard for the time involved. This buckle, featuring a Native American Thunderbird is a fantastic example of chip inlay and attention to design. The recesses on the wings come to a needle-thin point and the artisan managed to find the correct puzzle pieces to fill them, which was no small feat considering the size and shape of chips he had to locate, or in this case they may have been created for the task. Nevertheless, the tightness of the coral, turquoise and Mother of Pearl chips is impressive.

The Reeves family of the Navajo Nation, Gary, David and “Sunshine” are to be labeled as contemporary artisans as they are still producing fine Native American jewelry and have been doing so for decades. Something sets them apart though. They are old-school artisans that work mostly in sterling, using few stones while dedicating themselves to producing time-intensive work. This has served them well as their pieces are collectable and exquisitely crafted. This sterling Navajo belt buckle by Gary Reeves is a prime example of putting the outcome of your efforts in the forefront and ignoring the time required to achieve your goal. The sterling work on this buckle is all done with a hammer and a chisel, the coiled wire accent was hand-twisted and the use of stamping is limited to the single peyote button in the center of the buckle. It doesn't stop there—the tongue and belt attachment bar are also artfully crafted and done using Old Pawn techniques.

At Native Treasures we carry a full line of Native American jewelry, with the focus being on vintage artisan works of high quality. When acquiring pieces for the website the details are all important and warrant considerable investment when the piece shows the undeniable signs of dedication, talent and a desire to reach the design goal. When an artisan pursues their vision with such tenacity, the results are often astounding. This Unique American Art Form will live on as a testament to a people that have survived adversity and continue to express their connection to the Earth through their art.