Posted 10 years ago
WJoyDesigns
(2 items)
I have had this belt buckle in my collection for years and always wondered who the maker was. I have tried to look up the silver makers mark but with no results. It was given to me by a friend many moons ago when we were in school together. I have always loved this piece because of the sun design on the front.
I am wondering if this is an Aztec or Mexican sun symbol or perhaps Native American?
How old could this piece be?
Does anyone recognize the silver makers marks?
I would love any help that anyone could offer. I am planning on resurrecting this piece and making it back into a useful belt buckle! I am going to have a leather strap tooled with a matching design and some ornate embellishments :)
Thank you!
Wendy Joy
That's a Native American made buckle. Zuni Tribe. They usually added turquoise, coral and either pink mussel shell or mother of pearl as inlay into their designs.
I'll check a couple sites to see if I can find that makers mark. I'm more familiar with the Navajo Tribes works. I'll get back to you if I find it or maybe someone else here has an answer for you.
Dear shareurpassion,
Thank you for the info! I appreciate you taking the time out to look into the makers mark as well! The mystery is almost solved......
My first thought was Hopi, but it's been a long time since I've collected Native American art. Zuni might be right. Regardless, Native American arts from the southwestern US are definitely the place to start.
Just a suggestion. Recently I received a SW Native American sterling piece. In trying to find a maker to match the mark on the piece I had (it wasn't listed here http://www.art-amerindien.com/signature_picto-hallmarks.htm), I found a few websites for tribal art groups and a few emails later had tracked down my artist.
Working in my favor was a good guess about the tribe/style of the art (ended up contacting a brother or cousin of the actual artist) and recent legislation about Native American art. (If the piece says it is Navajo, it must be Navajo (not from some German (like me) who might simply enjoy using Navajo motifs). As a result, some of the Native American art communities have become more structured/refined, at least that's what I've seen in areas of KS/OK and I'd assume the SW is similar.)
(If this is really stuck in your head, and all else fails, I'd send a quick email to the main tribal offices and ask who would be the best to ask (history and art are an important part of the culture and business). The Osage Nation has a place like this on the reservation (Oklahoma), again I would expect the Hopi and Zuni Nations to also have some place you could start.)
Hi junkcollector,
I looked on the link you provided http://www.art-amerindien.com/signature_picto-hallmarks.htm and discovered that the mark I am looking for was listed there under a category entitled "Your help will be very appreciated to name the following marks:" It is listed as number 016 Hopi? on the right hand side of the page. Perhaps I will be able to check back there and get an answer one day. I appreciate your response and perhaps I will follow up on some of these ideas you have suggested :)
Thanks again :)