A repair to this stone looks like an easy fix although, it was hard for me to figure out if the stone around the chipped area is stable and if further repair would make this a ring to be worn without worry. Another thing is the metalwork and stone surface is pristine but still, there is loss. Really bummed I was afraid to bid this up. For our education, please evaluate and give your thoughts. Thanks for your replies, Sara
Credit photo: “American Indian Jewelry I” by Gregory Schaaf CIAC Press www.indianartbooks.com
The artist Ramona Loloma Poleyma (Hopi) made jewels from 1977 to 1984,
she also excels at making rugs. Ramona was born on June 27, 1934 and
lives in Hotevilla, Third Mesa Arizona.
Ramona, sister of Charles Loloma, were aunt and uncle of Verma Nequatewa and Sherian Honhongva. Apprenticing with Loloma (Nequatewa from 1966, Honhongva from 1976), the sisters worked with him until his retirement in the late 80’s. Their sense of continuity with and difference from him was reflected in the name they chose to share when they began to exhibit together in 1989: Sonwai is the feminine form of the Hopi word for “beauty” (the masculine being “loloma”). Around 1993 the sisters began to work independently. Nequatewa continued with the Sonwai name, while Honhongva used her own name.
I am not sure if I am following correctly. You are showing the stone and where it is chipped? I don’t see a chip. This was a ring you had a chance to bid on, but didn’t because of the chip?
Yes I bid on this but didn’t go as high as wanted to. Felt the ring as is, would be a hard sale in my shop. Since I know nothing about stone repair, I want to share hoping to be educated on the repair process for a piece like this and possibly open a discussion about stone repairs in general. Thank you.
Ok, got it. I am going to share a few pictures of turquoise. One is in the rough, many times you can get some very thin veins of turquoise. The next two show a stone that just had a lot more host rock than it did turquoise. I also show a side view of the stone. You will notice the black that sits on the bottom, this is turquoise backing and fills in those rough spots of the host rock. I think that is what you see here?
The stone looks great in this rock, a nice consistent blue with a webbed matrix. So much better than a large percentage of stones you see. I wouldn’t have let that bother me, but of course it might bother someone. It kept you from bidding up the piece.
However, I don’t think the stone is the winner here. I don’t know what this ring sold for, but anything we can associate with Charles Loloma can be very valuable.
