In a earlier post I put up pictures of a part of a unique bolo, buckle set by AA. I could only find Art Acoya. He must be at least pre internet, not much to find… Seen other of his items for sale. This set is unique, but all with this Hallmark are very colorful. Questions I have range from, was he Anglo or NA, date of work, value of set, Zuni? Any thoughts welcome. My guess is 1970s. Regards.
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Hello Bartleby,
One online source states that Art Acoya was Laguna Pueblo/Navajo. Although info for Acoya is scarce to find as you said, this piece along with a lot of other Acoya pieces seem to be roughly 1970’s at the earliest. Your buckle seems to fall into the 70’s-80’s era (this could be narrowed down if anyone can confirm when AA was making jewelry).
With that being said, if this is actually an Art Acoya piece, I was unable to find another example of a belt buckle that was remotely similar. I found an AA belt buckle (see image) that sold for $197 on EBTH.com, and the dimensions of the buckle were rather small (3.5" W x 0.25" H x 3.25" D). Your buckle seems to be a little bit bigger, and is very charming as well. I feel safe saying that your buckle is worth roughly the same amount as the one that sold online, maybe more to the right buyer (assuming this is actually art acoya, again- any of the acoya examples I found are a different style).
I am unable to find your other post regarding the matching bolo, but if you are able to please link the thread. I personally feel that a set or suite of any kind of jewelry raises the value of each individual piece! Although there is still a lot of mystery surrounding this buckle, I hope this info was helpful to you!
Cheers, BigBree
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Bigbree43, Thank You. I had a distinct feeling it was not Zuni as so many thought. They saw very little use, the bolo strap does need replacement. Some think the set a " Showpiece " of the Artists abilities. I love it’s original style. I have a few other of his items. The Buckle you posted is quite nice, one aspect of Arts work I see, is a abundance of colors. Thanks again for your time! Great knowledge!
I may have missed someone in the thread saying this, but the inlay work, I believe, is by Allen Aragon not Art Acoya.