I have this extremely well-crafted turquoise piece marked “Kirk Smith” - in printed font. From the research I’ve done on Kirk Smith, I have not come across any piece with this specific marking in printed letters, only in cursive or the initials. I was asked about the authenticity of the piece; it had not crossed my mind that it could be a “fake” because of the identical structure and detail and quality this has alongside other “authentic” pieces I’ve seen online. Does anyone have more information about this?
Did you purchase this bracelet? What year? I can’t imagine this isn’t authentic, a little more information might be helpful.
Thanks Jason for the reply. I purchased this bracelet along with other turquoise and Taxco jewelry from a woman who said it was her grandmother’s about 2 years ago. The pieces were extremely tarnished and many seemed very very old. I don’t have any other information besides that.
The curious thing is that printed font stamp. This thing is so unbelievably well-crafted that even if it was “fake”, the jeweler would have had to have been equally as talented as Kirk Smith!
I purchased a number of pieces from Kirk, I remember the KS and the italic Kirk Smith. However, nothing makes me think this is not a Kirk Smith piece. Hallmark stamps break all the time, new ones are made, changes are made.