Sophisticated Silver Concho Belt »

Navajo

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About The Artwork

Extremely fine example of what can be accomplished in silver casting using tufa stone. This very clean lined and quite sophisticated concho belt was pour cast into molds carved in stone. The buckle is remarkable for its areas of mass leading from a relatively slender oval central ring. When molten silver is poured, it immediately begins to cool as it hits the stone. Smaller areas cool faster than larger areas, as the silver flows through the carved channels. Frequently a casting will be incomplete due to silver cooling in a narrow channel blocking the flow. The buckle is a stylized "butterfly" or "moth" design--beautifully executed and hand finished, bu the eight "petal" floriform conchos are amazing in their almost lacy quality. The simple lines aremade ofswaged wire 5/32" of an inch wide. They intersect each other producing an almost rose window or lace doily effect. These conchos are immaculately hand finished at every point of intersection and there are 48 of these intersectionsin each concho! There are 11 conchos, each measuring 2 1/2" in diameter. A single heavy gauge copper strap is soldered to the back of each for attachment to a leather strap. The buckle is 2 1/4" in height at center pointby 3 1/4" width. This concho belt is fully adjustable to the length of any leather strap provided though the black leather strap used for display will acommodate a 28" waist to the middle hole--30" to the farthest "notch". Not only is this an elegant piece of engineering, the design in silver, is a wonderful accepnt with an unlimited possibilities.

About The Artist

The Navajo were the first of the Native Americans of the Southwest to learn silversmithing from the Spanish. Most Navajo jewelry emphasizes silver, with turquoise stones used as an accent. Some pieces are cast in sand or tufa molds, while others are hammered, using a male stamp and a female die.

Other Works By Artist:

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