I’ve had these earrings for some time, and never seen another pair constructed quite like them. It looks to me like a very old fashioned technique. I’d love to know if there is a specific maker known to do this.
I love the detail in the bears, they’re not just flat slices with minimal surface shaping, but real 3d little fetish bears.
All of my Mother’s 1950’s wires (for pierced ears) were constructed this way. Her N/A style earrings might have had a sterling bead in place of your turquoise one. If very fine wire, they would wear at bend points and break. Earrings I’d purchase in the '70’s would have this same wire shape. If heavy, they would almost cut and drag down my ears. Usually I’ve changed them out to a post, keeping the original “hardware”. I’ve recently purchased some new longer silver bead earrings with a shepherd’s hook wire, which isn’t really long enough to counter balance the weight, so I’m replacing with a self manufactured heavier gauge and longer shepherd’s hook wire. If changing the hard wear makes them more wearable, do it, just keep them for authenticity down the road. Not sure when shepherd style hooks became common place.
These do remind me of “kidney wire” that earrings commonly had before the current hook style came into fashion. I’ve had these since the early 90s, but I have a feeling they had some age when I received them because of the ear wire style. I wear them as is, with no plan to modify them, I try to be ginger with them when I take them on/off so I don’t have to bend them too much. They are actually a fairly heavy gauge wire, but with a bit of give.
A common Navajo style when I lived on the Navajo Reservation in the 1980’s.
A supply story I frequented had this style with the bezel cups already soldered on.
