Silver, Native American Silversmithing Styles, and Methods

Not All Silver Is Equal

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Sterling Silver: The silver that is most suitable for jewelry and design work is called sterling and is stamped as "sterling" or ".925 which indicates that it is 92.5 percent pure silver. The other 7.5 percent of the material is comprised of alloys, usually copper (which is what causes sterling silver to tarnish).

Mexican Silver: Mexican silver is usually 95% Silver and 5% Copper. After World War II, for jewelry and objects made in Taxco, Mexico, the Mexican government issued an assay mark guaranteeing the fineness to be 925 or higher. This mark is referred to as the "spread eagle" mark. The original mark did look like an eagle, but with modifications over the years, the mark was simplified. The number inside the mark is a workshop or city designation. In 1979, this mark was abandoned in favor of a series of registry letters and numbers assigned to individuals and workshops. Mexican silver is softer so can bends more easily than sterling silver…….which can be either a good or a bad thing.

German silver: It is not actually silver at all! Also called nickel silver, this popular alloy contains copper, zinc and nickel, but has no silver in it. Also sold under manufacturers' trade names, this material is very hard and must be machined.

Silver Overlay : This can have several meanings. When used in high-end tack accents, belt buckles and so on, silver overlay is made by mechanically bonding a layer of sterling silver over a thicker base metal, usually nickel. This creates a metal with the qualities of sterling at a lower price. Sterling overlay should be thick enough to allow the silversmith to make his engraving cuts in the sterling layer without cutting through to the base metal below. But in Native American jewelry, silver overlay refers to 100% Sterling Silver, both layers are sterling silver. The top layer is cut out with a jeweler's saw and placed on a solid sterling silver base. The Hopi Indians excel at Sterling Silver overlay.

Silver plate: Silver plating is the least expensive method of utilizing silver in decorative work. To silver plate, a base metal is electrostatically charged, so that a very thin layer of silver adheres to the base. The silver is usually applied as a liquid and is at approximately 7 millionths of an inch thick. Silver plate cannot be hand engraved, but it's often applied over design cuts made in the base metal.

Silversmithing Styles

Navajo - The Navajo were the first silversmiths. They commonly design jewelry around a stone's natural shape. When they do inlay, it is bolder than Zuni inlay and usually has silver between the inlaid pieces (called "channel inlay").

Zuni - The Zuni are stonesmiths that cut stones to fit into a precise geometric pattern or design. They tend to use four traditional colors:

Blue - turquoise
Red - Coral
Black - Jet or Onyx
White - Opal or Mother of Pearl

Their inlay tends to be more complex than Navajo, with more cuts and patterns. They usually don't use silver between the inlaid pieces but produce "stone on stone" inlays. The Zuni also produce meticulous Needlepoint (narrow stones pointed on both ends) and Petit Point (any other small cut stone shape such as oval, teardrop etc.) pieces, often in clusters. Most snake designs are done by the Zuni.

Hopi - The Hopi are master silversmiths and design overlay pieces mostly of solid silver with a cutout design on top of the main piece. The two pieces are "sweated" together, that is heated so that they become one. The background piece is usually oxidized (darkened) and etched (texturized) with hashmarks. Two characteristics of Hopi work are overlay and minimal use of stones.

Manufacturing Methods

Handmade: As the name implies, metal manipulation is done by hand, from cutting to polishing and engraving. Labor always increases cost, so this is the most expensive manufacturing method and also the most desired by consumers. Handmade accessories will always have slight yet charming variations in shape and finish.

Benchmade: This is a term that refers to an item that is partially handmade and partially machine-made. For example, some silver Navajo beads have machine cut pieces that then are soldered and hand strung by a Navajo Indian craftsman. These are considered benchmade.

Machine-made: Metal is machine-manipulated for cost savings and uniformity. Industrial presses cookie-cut shapes, which are then embossed by hydraulic machines. For modestly priced goods, machine-made pieces are often stamped from nickel or a proprietary alloy, then plated for a shiny finish.

Hallmark:
Most modern Indian jewelry is stamped "Sterling" and is signed or has a hallmark by the artist. However a lack of hallmarks, initials, or signatures doesn't mean it is not authentic. In the past, most reservation-made Indian jewelry was not signed and had no hallmark.

See our selection of Authentic Native American Jewelry.