Welcome.
It is very pretty. Are there any markings on it, such as Sterling or anything else?
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@Crystallmccoy83 Welcome to the forum. If possible, post some photos of the back. It may be helpful in answering your questions.
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I like your nice old squash blossom! I agree, pictures of the reverse side would help! But to answer your question, yes, it is “real”. Age…my guess would be 1960 - 70s. There was an explosion of this type of jewelry made during that time, varying quite a bit in quality and quite a bit made by non-native people. The silver work on yours is well done and the beads are center punched; I feel it is likely native made. I know what I might pay for a piece like this, but I’m not knowledgable enough to give an “appraisal”. There are others on this site who may be able to do so if you provide more photos.
Welcome to the forum, and thanks for sharing your squash blossom!
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@Bmpdvm I just finished reading your post. I haven’t heard of this before: “… the beads are center punched.” Can you please help me to understand what that means? Thank you.
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Welcome to the forums. Nice squash blossom!
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Hi @Patina. Years ago when the process of making beads was explained to me, the term “center punched” was used to describe the process of punching holes from the inside out before the 2 halves are soldered together.
I found this link that may explain it better than I can:
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@Bmpdvm Thanks so much for this information! The article you linked was very helpful in understanding the various terms/meanings used in the process of N/A bead making.
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I’ve just seen those re-worked beads on a squash necklace at a NA jewelry show @Bmpdvm . The seams had been ground down and polished, and looks like patina added on the sides. IMHO looks terrible and ruins the look.
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Sorry Steve…I assume you are referring to the machine punched beads in the bag, not the squash blossom beads.
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I think I was mistaken @Bmpdvm . The beads I saw definitely look like new manufacture. They have an industrialist look to them and IMHO look bad on a traditional squash. Navajopearsranch.com sells them and claims handmade. An 18” long strand of 10mm beads is $63. They actually don’t look bad as a stand alone strand. Are the NA actually making these so cheaply?
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@StevesTrail Thanks for posting this contemporary necklace. I also see online offerings for “Navajo Pearls” (where did that trade name originate?) Seems like this style is very popular. The web site you referenced states that the metals are white bronze & German silver. Sheesh, what a combo. As far as the “handmade” claim, I can’t help but wonder if the necklaces are assembled by Native Americans rather than handmade as we understand the term. Of course, I may be totally wrong about that and they are handmade.
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So maybe I’m the oddball, but I kinda like the look of those beads. But 60.00 seems low for handmade Navajo pearls (and it’s hard to tell quality very well from a pic).
In the same vein, I bought these saucer pearls directly from the Navajo artist at the Eiteljorg Indian Art Market, and was told they are handmade (they were definitely higher priced than @StevesTrail example).
They have a more modern feel, and I like the darkening done to them. I have them pictured here with my older ones that look more traditional to me (they were pawn).
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Sheesh is putting it mildly!#! What a great example of buyer beware! Kinda sad that unless people know what to look for, they are being fooled.
Didn’t actually know there was a white bronze???
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I’ve seen these strands of machined beads for quite a while. While they are OK ( not my liking) they should not be advertised as “handmade”. I guess they could be called Navajo pearls if there is a Navajo involved somewhere in the manufacturing process…don’t know if there is a definition for that term. How can they be sterling for that price??
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@Ziacat, Love your saucer shaped pawn beads, and agree the two strands compliment each other. I can’t tell from the picture, but your round strand does not look like the newer style @StevesTrail posted. There are lots of Mexican sterling beads out there that are quite nice and appear similar to yours and a better price; most I’ve seen are completely round and don’t appear to have a seam. I’m uncertain how they are made.
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You are correct, the round beads are the old ones, the saucer-shaped are the new ones I just got this summer at the Indian market. I have no idea how old the round ones are. They told me at Cameron Trading Post that they were “older.”
I was thinking the saucer shaped ones had a little bit of the look that @StevesTrail posted. The coloring, not the shape.
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In my opinion these are machine made and at $60-70 per strand they are most likely made somewhere other that the US.
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