I am trying to correctly identify the maker(s) of two silver brooches, purchased in North Vancouver by my father between 1957 and 1962.
One is an eagle head with formline engraving in the NWC style.
The other shows three stylized figures in a boat, perhaps Wynken, Blynken, and Nod. I believe that this one was made by the silversmith / jeweller who owned the studio / shop / gallery in North Vancouver where my father bought these brooches.
Welcome.
Could you post photos?
Fronts, backs and sides.
thank you.
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Thank you, Fernwood - Here are the photos of the two brooches, with detail shots of the makers’ marks on the back. (As a new member, I am limited to posting five images but can maybe post others in another message, if needed).
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@MGS , I don’t know who made your formline (eagle?) First Nations pin, but may I suggest you join SE AK Native Silversmiths Attribution Group on Facebook and post your photo there. Despite the specific-to-Alaska name, there’s a lot of chat about PNW First Nations silversmiths in general, and of course there’s a huge amount of creative cross-pollination across the Alaska-British Columbia border. This group helped me identify the (Tlingit) maker of a mystery pendant that I found in a local (Victoria, B.C.) thrift shop, so you never know!
As you feel there’s a chance the boat brooch may be made by a coastal First Nations silversmith as well, it wouldn’t hurt to ask about that too 
How I wish we had some kind of database of marks for PNW silversmiths! – there’s such a paucity of searchable information on them. My own knowledge is limited to the few that I have seen or purchased personally. There’s a book by Alexander Dawkins (a co-owner of Vancouver’s Lattimer Gallery): Understanding Northwest Coast Indigenous Jewelry.that may be worth a look. I seem to have misplaced my copy, frustratingly, but I’ll borrow it from the library and take a look. It is pretty much limited to (current) artists who sell through the Lattimer Gallery, so it’s far from a complete list, but there is just a chance your mark is in there. I’ll let you know if it is.
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@chamekke Thank you so much for suggesting SE AK Silversmiths Attribution Group - I will definitely follow that up and have my husband post details for me using his FB account. Twenty years ago, when I was visiting Vancouver, I went to Vancouver library and looked through one or two reference books of makers marks, but without any success. Now I am hoping that social media will lead to some success or perhaps the book that you mentioned might turn something up.
It is very frustrating that there is no really comprehensive record of makers marks. I really hope to identify the makers. Like the many others skilled silversmiths whose makers’ marks are not recorded, their work deserves to be properly recognised.
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I highly recommend both the facebook group, and this book!!
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Love, love the eagle! I only have one piece of PNW jewelry (bought it when visiting Vancouver Island), but hope to get more someday. I was hoping @chamekke would chime in 
I immediately thought the other pin was mushrooms! But now I see the boat with people in it, and I googled Wynken, Blynken and Nod. I remembered it vaguely. Now the pin makes complete sense. Good luck in your search!
I was really hoping against hope I’d recognize your eagle, but it’s way before my time! I do hope you get an answer, and I’ll take a look at the book when it comes in (I’ve got a library hold on it) 
It’s certainly a charming piece and I really hope you find out the maker!
@MGS , I just got the Dawkins book from the library, but sadly, although I looked at every artist’s mark in the book, I could not find one with a mark like yours. Here’s what the artists’ section looks like:
As compensation, here also is a shot of the page on the depiction of birds, with an Eagle at upper left:
It did strike me that your pendant is unusual in several ways. The formline design is very minimal (almost no ornamentation), the eye is openwork (a round hole in the pendant), the beak has an exaggerated hook, and the mark on the back is a symbol (a stylized bird?) rather than the maker’s name or initials. I haven’t seen any of these features before. And that may mean absolutely nothing, as I’m not super-experienced! Or it could be clues pointing to a non-Indigenous origin. I would be delighted to find that’s not the case, of course, and I hope someone on the Facebook group can answer the question decisively for you.
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Forgot to say that I also checked for the mark on your three-men-in-a-boat (“JHL” ?), but couldn’t find it in the book either.