|
This hand made silver and turquoise bracelet, was recently retrieved from a Gallup, New Mexico pawn shop. All the jewelry from this pawn shop was pawned by Native Americans living in the local area. Gallup is the "pawn capital" and "Indian jewelry capital" of the Southwest, close to the Navajo and Zuni reservations.
The bracelet appears to be an older piece from the 1970's or 80's. The silver wire frame bracelet is set with six clusters of tiny turquoise needlepoints with twisted silver rope around the edges. The stones are in excellent condition, with no cracked or loose stones.
The bracelet is 9/16" wide with an inner measurement of about 5-3/8" end-to-end plus an adjustable opening gap of 1-1/8". Weighs 15 grams. The bracelet is unsigned and unmarked as to silver content but it has been tested and I guarantee it to be coin silver or better. The exact age of this bracelet is unknown, but it appears to be an older piece. The pawn shop dealers I deal with in Gallup are saying that fewer Native Americans are letting their pawn go dead, so true dead pawn jewelry is becoming more difficult to find. That's good for the Natives, not so good for the collectors.
www.tumbleweedsjewelry.com
All of the items I sell are AUTHENTIC, Native American made. I purchase most of the new items directly, in person, at the reservations or from the artists themselves. The pawn items are purchased by me, from reputable Southwestern pawn shops with whom I have dealt for many years. Most of the vintage pieces are obtained from friends of my family who run a Western and Native American Art auction house. They've been in business for ages and are very knowledgeable. And finally, my family has dealt in Native American and other antiquities for over 90 years, and I have specialized in Indian Jewelry for the last 20 years. This insures the authenticity of the jewelry I sell and protects your investment.
|
