There are a LOT of fraudulent pieces of Kakiki jewelry suddenly popping up (or maybe they were always there and I didn’t notice).
That said, the things to look for to identify REAL Kakiki jewelry include (but are not limited to) the following:
Maker’s Mark - my father signed every piece personally and his maker’s mark can be found on art-amerindien.com. Accept no substitutions.
Claws - Dad only used real bear and raptor claws, nothing synthetic, carved, cast or otherwise.
Leaves - it’s hard to describe the delicacy intrinsic in the Kakiki leaf work, but they were precise, detailed and never curliqued at the ends.
Stones - he never used stabilized stones at all. He never used malachite or any other stones other than turquoise as the primary stones in his pieces.
Beads - I’m seeing a lot of beads that are waffled in or oval design. He never used those. His beads were always round and either smooth or very simply stamped. Also, he used a double strand leading into a single strand, but the double strand was generally longer than what I’ve been seeing.
These are the primary things I’ve been seeing that aren’t consistent with my Dad’s jewelry. If anyone thinks they have a piece the are unsure of, feel free to contact me. I’ll do what I can.