Dig It - 9/15/25

Here is a rare treat, Fellow Seekers. Many people have asked me how old this bracelet is, and I have to say I think it is such and such based on certain manufacturing techniques and other characteristics. This time no need; the bracelet is engraved on the inside with 'R.N.B. 1905'; here we have initials and a date. Based on the use of only a cold chisel and a circular punch to make the design on the top, I would have dated it to the 1890s or slightly earlier. There is a single stamp down by the terminals, but the rest are all early simple tools.

Now when I first came out to the Southwest in 1968, because of bad roads and few pickup trucks or automobiles, the Navajo Reservation was a big place. You can imagine how big it seemed in 1905 with almost no cars or roads, just horses. In the early 20th century there were pockets of the reservation that were very behind the times, and the silversmiths would have been using older techniques. That is why it is much safer to date with broad time periods like the late 19th to early 20th century. Lonesome.