Dig It - 4/14/22
Dig It, Fellow Seekers!
This is an early bracelet. My guess is 1880s or 1890s. It is fairly light in weight, but it is important to remember how poor the Navajo were after their interment at Bosque Redondo. By the way, “Son of Old Man Hat” is a great book if you’d like to gain insight into the Navajo way of life post Bosque Redondo. Back to the bracelet, I have had two other bracelets over the years by this same silversmith, recognizable by that same repoussé button. One of them was Bob Ward’s wearing bracelet. Does anybody remember Bob Ward? He was a great “Indian Trader” and wonderful character. He was a friend of Elvis Presley and I loved to get him to tell stories about the King…Thank You Very Much!
But I digress…when this bracelet was made there were probably only a handful of Navajo Silversmiths. This smith has only used 3 or 4 stamps to decorate the surface. The decoration looks a bit crude at first, but on closer examination it has a wonderful flow and energy. This is what an early bracelet looks like. Seek Out!