I’d love any help in identifying the creator and subject of this pin. Please see photos: Two hallmarks on back. Bear paw motif or badger?
Background: purchased in Tucson in the 70s-80s — likely direct from local artists guilds or certain shops known for authenticity. My only guess on one of the hallmarks is possibly Hopi Huston Naseyoma (source: art-Amerindian.com H hallmarks)? No luck so far with second mark.
Also - my grandmother always called this a bear paw, but I have read that some long-clawed paws are actually badger motifs mislabeled “bear” along the way. Anyone know which might be the most likely intent of this artist or craft guild?
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I have no info for you, but it’s a beautiful piece! Definitely Hopi work, in my opinion!
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Fantastic - thanks! Any clue as to whether this design is bear or badger? My grandmother called it a bear paw but the long claws made me wonder.
OK, thanks! I thought those HN marks looked close, also. Maybe second mark is HC “Hopi Craft“ then. They didn’t look quite alike to me, so I didn’t want to leap to conclusions - zero experience!
*Correction: possible artist name Hyson, not Hudson. Spellcheck “fixed” it automatically.
Definitely Bear paw. Looks more like an AC mark. Hopi Crafts would be a sun face. Might be a younger silversmith apprentice’s mark?? I checked my books for both AC and HC with no luck.
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Thanks! It’s just a small piece but it’s been a family favorite, so it’s nice to know a little more about it.
The Hopi Guild is a sun mark. Hopicrafts was a shop that operated from 1962 to 83 and has a conjoined HC as its mark. According to the Messiers’ book “Reassessing Hallmarks of Native Southwest Jewelry” all Hopicrafts jewelry was in the overlay style with textured patterned backgrounds as in this pin. So style as well as timeline seems to fit here for Hopicrafts. The only thing is the hallmark here has a second bar on the H; I don’t know what that’s about but I still think it might be Hopicrafts.
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Probably just a mistake when stamping. Most of the hopicraft marks appear to be a single line stamp used multiple times to make the hallmark.
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