Navajo
Southwest
1930s
Sterling silver with turquoise
Total circumference 7 1/4 in (18.4 cm), gap 1 in (2.5 cm), width 1 3/4 in (4.4 cm); 53.68 grams
Provenance: Tucson trade
This Navajo cuff by Fred Peshlakai centers a large oval turquoise cabochon, blue with a striking golden matrix, set in a twisted rope bezel. Silver wire scrolls and clustered drop beads frame the center stone above and below, with a smaller square turquoise set into each shoulder of the band. The balanced scrollwork and beadwork around the stones show the symmetry and careful construction for which Peshlakai is known.
The three stones are closely matched in color, the two squares echoing the blue and gold of the oval center. At just over 53 grams the cuff has real weight and presence, its silverwork built up around the stones rather than stamped into the band. It dates to the 1930s and reflects the high quality turquoise Peshlakai favored throughout his work.
Fred Peshlakai, 1896 to 1974, was a Navajo silversmith widely regarded as one of the most influential of the twentieth century, the bridge between the early Navajo smiths of the 1800s and the Native modernists who followed. Born at Crystal, New Mexico, he was the son of Slender Maker of Silver and apprenticed with his father before working briefly at Maisel's Trading Post in Albuquerque. He later opened a shop on Olvera Street in Los Angeles, where he worked for nearly twenty years and became the first Native American to run his own jewelry shop in the city. He taught Kenneth Begay, known as the Father of Modern Navajo Jewelry, and was among the first to emphasize symmetry and high quality turquoise in Navajo silverwork.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Navajo
Southwest
1930s
Sterling silver with turquoise
Total circumference 7 1/4 in (18.4 cm), gap 1 in (2.5 cm), width 1 3/4 in (4.4 cm); 53.68 grams
Provenance: Tucson trade
This Navajo cuff by Fred Peshlakai centers a large oval turquoise cabochon, blue with a striking golden matrix, set in a twisted rope bezel. Silver wire scrolls and clustered drop beads frame the center stone above and below, with a smaller square turquoise set into each shoulder of the band. The balanced scrollwork and beadwork around the stones show the symmetry and careful construction for which Peshlakai is known.
The three stones are closely matched in color, the two squares echoing the blue and gold of the oval center. At just over 53 grams the cuff has real weight and presence, its silverwork built up around the stones rather than stamped into the band. It dates to the 1930s and reflects the high quality turquoise Peshlakai favored throughout his work.
Fred Peshlakai, 1896 to 1974, was a Navajo silversmith widely regarded as one of the most influential of the twentieth century, the bridge between the early Navajo smiths of the 1800s and the Native modernists who followed. Born at Crystal, New Mexico, he was the son of Slender Maker of Silver and apprenticed with his father before working briefly at Maisel's Trading Post in Albuquerque. He later opened a shop on Olvera Street in Los Angeles, where he worked for nearly twenty years and became the first Native American to run his own jewelry shop in the city. He taught Kenneth Begay, known as the Father of Modern Navajo Jewelry, and was among the first to emphasize symmetry and high quality turquoise in Navajo silverwork.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
