Zuni, New Mexico
1990s
Sterling silver, turquoise, coral, jet, mother of pearl, leather
Ten conchos, each 2 1/2 inches by 3 inches (6.4 by 7.6 cm)
Belt length 46 1/4 inches (117.5 cm)
Signed
Provenance: Private collection, El Paso, Texas
The belt carries ten conchos on a black leather strap, each inlaid with a different animal worked in stone and shell against a plain silver ground, including bison, bighorn sheep, elk, horse, and mountain lion. Each animal is built from cut sections of jet, mother of pearl, coral, and turquoise fitted to describe the coat, horns, and markings, with fine engraved line work carried across the silver to render legs, fur, and the ground beneath. The conchos are framed at the sides by stepped inlaid triangles in turquoise and coral, and the animals are shown in profile at rest, each occupying its plaque as a single subject.
Dale Edaakie was born in 1938 at Zuni Pueblo and works in the lapidary inlay tradition for which Zuni silversmiths are known. His parents, Dennis and Nancy Edaakie, are recognized for their inlaid bird subjects, and Dale took the family technique in a different direction, building his work around large mammals rendered at scale. The animal subjects require a wider palette of stone and shell than bird work and a different approach to cutting, since the coat of a bison or the horn of a ram must be built from graded sections rather than laid as flat color.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Zuni, New Mexico
1990s
Sterling silver, turquoise, coral, jet, mother of pearl, leather
Ten conchos, each 2 1/2 inches by 3 inches (6.4 by 7.6 cm)
Belt length 46 1/4 inches (117.5 cm)
Signed
Provenance: Private collection, El Paso, Texas
The belt carries ten conchos on a black leather strap, each inlaid with a different animal worked in stone and shell against a plain silver ground, including bison, bighorn sheep, elk, horse, and mountain lion. Each animal is built from cut sections of jet, mother of pearl, coral, and turquoise fitted to describe the coat, horns, and markings, with fine engraved line work carried across the silver to render legs, fur, and the ground beneath. The conchos are framed at the sides by stepped inlaid triangles in turquoise and coral, and the animals are shown in profile at rest, each occupying its plaque as a single subject.
Dale Edaakie was born in 1938 at Zuni Pueblo and works in the lapidary inlay tradition for which Zuni silversmiths are known. His parents, Dennis and Nancy Edaakie, are recognized for their inlaid bird subjects, and Dale took the family technique in a different direction, building his work around large mammals rendered at scale. The animal subjects require a wider palette of stone and shell than bird work and a different approach to cutting, since the coat of a bison or the horn of a ram must be built from graded sections rather than laid as flat color.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
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