Hallmarked and non-hallmarked necklaces

[cheyne]

My father purchased these necklaces in 1975. They were gifts to my mother, who recently gave them to me. I am looking for any information about these pieces, I believe they are Navajo make, but know nothing about the turquoise. The beads look handmade to me. There are no cracks or damage to either piece. The story goes that on the smaller piece, the bottom center pendant was originally a ring that was later attached to the necklace. Both necklaces are 17.5 inches long. The 5 “discs” on the first piece are 1 7/8 to 2 1/8 inches long and 1 1/4 to 1 3/8 inches wide. The pendants on the second necklace are 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches long and 5/8 to 3/4 inches wide.

Any information on these pieces would help me greatly. I will be passing these down to my nieta (granddaughter) and want to include any additional information possible.

[Jason]

Thanks for sharing, beautiful necklaces. You are right, these are Navajo made necklaces. This is a time when Navajo jewelry experienced a boom and many Navajo artists are making jewelry. I could not find anything on the hallmark. 1975 is before we see Chinese turquoise hit the market, so you have something American here. Turquoise is always difficult to determine which mine, especially from a photo. The stone has some similarities to Godber Burnham pieces I have seen. The other necklace I would call Kingman Turquoise. The bigger piece $750 - $900, smaller $150 - $180 if we had them in our shop. Hope this helps.