Antique Vintage Native Navajo Sterling Silver Malachite Thunderbird Brooch Pin

  

Age Circa : Antique 1920 - 1940. Country of Origin: United States, Navajo Nation.

Gram Weight : 10.7 Grams. Main Stone Measurements/Color: Green with light striations - The stone measures. Stone Treatment : The stone appears to be untreated, but we are not certified Gemologists and cannot be sure. Item Measurements: The brooch measures 1.75" in height by 1.25" in width.

Closure Type: Old time safety locking C clasp. Convertible to Pendant: If desired, your local jeweler can add a bale to this piece so it can be worn as a pendant. Notable Features : This brooch would have been handmade by a Navajo Nation silversmith. It is made of solid Coin Silver, the artist would have melted down U. 90 Coin Silver to create this Thunderbird brooch.

The brooch depicts a classic Navajo Nation spiritual symbol of a Thunderbird. The Thunderbird has hand stamped old time Navajo sun rays, pyramids, and adobe type cliff dwellings. The head of the Thunderbird also includes sun rays and pyramids, as well as a small hole acting as the eye. The silver is contoured in shape to give a life like appearance.

At the center of the brooch is a cabochon cut Mexican Malachite. The Malachite includes a medium green hue mixed with striations around the sides. This stone most likely would have been brought up from Mexico and traded with Native American artists.

This beautiful piece was made by a very talented Native American silversmith. It features hand crafted silversmith work throughout. Antique Native American jewelry is very rare to find. This is due to these pieces being made for reservation and personal use before the tourist trade became popular. Very few pieces were made and even less survived to today.

Almost universally, the Thunderbird as a Native American symbol conveys concepts such as: Power, provision, expansiveness, transformation, divine dominion, indomitable spirit, unquestioned authority and messages from the other-world's. Navajo Indian silversmiths, working from 1870 to 1900, learned the stamping of Indian ornaments from Mexican leather workers, rather than from the silversmiths who had taught them. Stamping's are usually hand hammered using a handcrafted stamp and include traditional Native American symbols.

Pre 1950's Navajo silversmith's would make jewelry out of US 90% Silver coins. They would use Half Dollars, Quarters, & Mercury Dimes.

This type of jewelry is very rare as it usually contained a lot of silver and was expensive to make. Whole Coin jewelry was worn around the reservation as a status symbol of wealth. Malachite is a popular stone which has light and dark green banded areas. Many beautiful specimens of malachite contain special combinations with other minerals, such as azurite, cuprite, or chrysocolla.

PLEASE WAIT FOR AN UPDATED INVOICE BEFORE PAYING FOR YOUR ITEMS. Thank you for your cooperation. The item "Antique Vintage Native Navajo Sterling Silver Malachite Thunderbird Brooch Pin" is in sale since Sunday, October 08, 2017.

This item is in the category "Jewelry & Watches\Ethnic, Regional & Tribal\Native American\Pins, Brooches". The seller is "abeautifultimeco" and is located in Fort Collins, Colorado. This item can be shipped to United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Denmark, Romania, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Czech republic, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Estonia, Australia, Greece, Portugal, Cyprus, Slovenia, Japan, China, Sweden, South Korea, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand, Belgium, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Russian federation, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Norway, Saudi arabia, United arab emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Croatia, Malaysia, Chile, Colombia, Costa rica.

• Tribal Affiliation: Navajo
• Metal: Sterling Silver
• Metal Purity: .900
• Ethnic Origin: Navajo
• Main Stone: Malachite
• Jewelry Type: Pins
• Country of Origin: United States
• Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
• Signed?