Contemporary Navajo Silver

Contemporary Navajo Silver

by Melody Amsel-Arieli

All images courtesy Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, Ariz. and Santa Fe, N.M.

Courtesy New England Antiques Journal, April 2015

Roped and beaded silver and coral pin in “sunburst” shape, contemporary, 1.75.” Verso stamped “AB,” $300. 

Though sales plummeted during the Great Depression, the Navajo silver market began to recover by the 1970s. Today, silversmiths produce traditional items like squash blossom necklaces, turquoise-studded pins and mother-in- law bells, which, by tinkling, warn sons-in-law of their impending arrivals. They also create specialized items like tie tacks, cuff inks, money clips, barrettes and watchbands - even collar corners that accent fashionable velveteen blouses. 

Silver overlay, French-hook earrings by Alfred Joe, c. 1990, 2.25" x 1.5", 15grams, $125. 

Coral and silver bracelet featuring round beads, by Herbert Begay, contemporary, size 7.375”, to include a 1.5” gap, bandwidth 1”, verso stamped “Navajo HSB Sterling .925,” $1,500.