Sadlly, my father passed away in March, 89 years old and he will be missed. My mom passed 2 years ago. It’s hard to go through their things but finally are getting around to it. I’d previously posted a couple squash blossom necklaces which we have mounted in shadow boxes now. They look great. Now I’ll be taking home a bunch of stuff, including a lot of native american jewelry. This is just a small sampling of the kind of things. I pictured these as I have a lot of memories of my dad wearing this set. I think but am not sure he bought it from Wesley’s Jewelers in Phoenix back in the 70’s or thereabouts. If you know anything of their makers or the turquoise itself, I’d love to be able to add to the story. Thanks.
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Since I didn’t get any responses yet, I put the pictures on google ai and tried to figure it out. What I got in response was that the pieces were likely made by Jerome Begay because of the block style JB mark on the watch/bracelet and the belt buckle. It said the turquoise is likely from either Kingman or Sleeping Beauty turquoise due to the vibrant blue color, smooth caochon cuts and subtle dark webbing. I don’t know if google ai is correct or not, if anyone can confirm or correct this, I’d appreciate it.
Also, if anyone could recommend someone in the Austin / San Antonio Texas area who could appraise about 30 or so pieces for insurance purposes, I’d be grateful.
Thank you.
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try looking on this page for a match to JB
https://www.art-amerindien.com/hallmarks/j-indian-native-american-jewelry-marks.htm
and this page for the TT bolo
https://www.art-amerindien.com/hallmarks/t-american-indian-jewelry-marks.htm
steel stamped marks like that can be the hardest to id and easiest to fake
example. look closely at these items, all attributed to jerome begay simply because JB was stamped on the back
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Condolences on the loss of your father. I would definitely NOT trust AI for identifying either the maker or the stones. Simple one or 2 letter block letter stamping can be extremely difficult to accurately ID, as stamps like this were sold in supply shops and literally anyone could buy them. Unless you can really match the design or style to a known jewelers work, or otherwise have provenance, you really can’t make an ID. You might get lucky and find someone that recognizes the work though. That being said Kingman is a good guess (doesn’t look like Sleeping Beauty to me), and they look right for 1970’s work. I think getting your jewelry appraised is an excellent idea and your best bet for finding out more. If you DM me I can give you the name of an acquaintance who does virtual appraisals.
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Thank you for the replies. I’ll DM you OrbitOrange next week when we get back home and things unpacked. Much appreciated.
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I recommend you contact your insurance company (not your agent) and ask to speak with an underwriter in excess surplus lines. Ask what they will require in order to be properly covered. Ask if you do your own research and obtain retail (replacement cost) prices for similar items by the same maker, if that would be acceptable proof of value. And ask for an email response as backup. You might be able to bypass the pricy appraisal route.
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Thanks StevesTrail. Good Idea. In addition to the NA jewelry, there’s a lot of non NA pieces which are very nice. I found some old appraisals with good descriptions for the non NA jewelry which gives me a good idea of what the pieces are and can go from there to figure out insurance value on them. It’s just the NA stuff I don’t know anything about. There’s some really interesting pieces I might post later one. One is a multi strand ladies necklace with a lot of birds, also a bunch of rings, bracelets, bolo ties, belt buckles, etc.
Just some more of my thoughts on appraisals.
It is more straight forward to value a gemstone and gold ring as there are established criteria for stone grading and metal assay.
Due to the nature of this type of jewelry all being hand made and unique, I feel replacement cost appraisals can only be established by comparison with like items. As such, an appraiser would do the same as you could do yourself.
And what value do you place on an item: a huge retail store price or auction / actual sale price? Insurance companies have changed the way they will pay claims. You need to ask them what is required and have them commit in writing. And if you do use an appraiser, they need to appraise based on the insurers requirements and provide documentation.
Best of luck sorting it out.
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Thanks! Much appreciated.