Gorgeous silver hinged bangle bracelet signed by Topazio of Portugal featuring a repousse "harvest" motif with bunches of mature wheat in rectangular frames. Topazio bracelets are the best of the genre - their designs are crisp and register easily to the eye; the finishing is impeccable and their decorative motifs a joy to behold...

Just shy of 2" long, I give you the third and last and definitely quirkiest set of Sigi Pineda silver earrings I have been talking about. I happened to come upon the first of these in early summer, fell in love with its cartoonish strangeness - I had never seen this line of Sigi's before. And since all good things come in threes, I found two more pairs in the months following that initial discovery...

The most fun Sigi Pineda earrings I have ever had, this set is in fact the first in a series of three pairs I will be presenting, all in the same design vein. Quirky and definitely playful, the figures look as if springing out of a child's sketch book. Human? Penguin? A combination of the two? Whatever the case, they are striking, rendered in silver and opaque black oxidation, a surrealist representation of wearable bipeds...

Dated for 1972 and signed by Kultaseppa Salovaara Ky of Finland, this sterling silver and rose quartz hinged bangle bracelet epitomizes the less-is-more attitude of Scandinavian design. There is nothing superfluous here - everything serves a purpose and at the same time contributes to the bracelet's serene, confident beauty. Yet I think that the strongest element is the crystalline, soft pink of the rose quartz spheres...

Set in a raised bezel on a hand-hammered sterling platform the “mask” in this vintage Carmen Beckmann brooch is carved out of dyed calcite, often - and mistakenly - referred to as “jade”. Oxidation and a geometric glyph applique add complexity to the design and the portrait’s minimalist rendition brings to mind the more austere of ancient artifacts unearthed from the Mexican soil...

The last example of a small Los Castillo "onix negro" jewelry collection I acquired a little time ago, this mod bracelet is perfect for the medium to smaller wrist. Its thick links remind me of mahjong tiles and I am captivated by their minimalist geometry. Easy to wear yet definitely a bracelet whose weight feels warm and familiar when you have it on - the perfect accessory to add that little bit of style to make it special. Measuring 6 3/8" long (wearable) by 1/2" wide it weighs 50.0 grams...

A fabulous example of late Deco Portuguese jewelry this hinged "bangle" is signed by Topazio, the country's foremost manufacturer of silver hollowware and jewelry. Wrought in .833 silver, its two "wings" are made up of curved panels with alternating scrolled niello and figural decoration. This specific design is known as "monuments of Portugal", the Belem Tower and the National Pantheon being among the country's architectural treasures portrayed here...

Slick, less-is-more design and a beautifully carved amethyst "mask" make this vintage 1950s Mexican sterling silver ring easy to wear and a real treat for the eye! There is something masculine about the simplicity of the ring itself that is, however, tempered by the delicately soft, slender features of the stone "face". The amethyst is here semi-translucent and the absence of intense inclusions allows the light to penetrate it and make it look like purple Italian ice...

The links in this Deco Mexican silver necklace by Victoria , to the world Ana Maria Nunez de Brilanti, are inspired by cactus flowers and hand-wrought in sterling silver sheet with good thickness. One of my favorite designs by her, it was available in at least two different widths and the example at hand is the narrower, easier to wear version no matter what the occasion or the ... weather is...

Question marks, whether straight or inverted, seem to have provided a fun, tongue-in-cheeck motif when Taxco maestros were designing earrings. I have seen them hanging off repousse semi-spheres, studded with turquoise cabs and even having cascabeles themselves. Yet this big, bold and beautiful set goes above and beyond its peers. Sculptural repoussage, tiny beading accents and oxidation combine here with gorgeous bezel-set amethyst cabs in a curvaceous, sexy pair of Mexican Deco earrings...

I promised yesterday that I had two more of those Sigi Pineda surrealist figures dangle earring sets to present and here is the second pair. There is something as endearing as it is quirky about the specific design line - I am not sure what Sigi was into when he created these - but I find them all weirdly irresistible. Overlay and oxidation are used here too to convey the human form, its hands crossed on the chest, turning a minimalist profile away from the onlooker...

Mexican sterling silver heavy link section bangle bracelet circa 1970s 1980. This modernist sculptural 13/16" wide vintage bracelet is a Castillo design and it consists of fully hinged segments with a tall push-button box clasp. It is stamped TC-117 MEXICO 925 and it weighs an substantial 115.3 grams (3.7 ounces). Nicely finished designer quality...

Most probably designed by Salvador Teran when he worked for his cousins, the Los Castillo, this pair of Mexican modernist silver dangle earrings is not an easy set to find. Though the Los Castillo did not experiment as much in modernism as some other Taxco maestros and workshops they do count among their creations some amazing examples thanks to Teran's genius. The exaggerated, elongated figures forming the earrings' main body bear the surrealist stamp of Taxco's foremost, in my opinion, moderni...

With delicately carved features, this silver and tiger’s eye Egyptian Revival “Cleopatra” bolo tie is a small work of art that came out of the Los Ballesteros workshop. One of the best - and definitely the most persistent - Taxco talleres involved in the creation of exquisite “mask” jewelry, the Los Ballesteros used an array of semi-precious and hard- stones to create serene, out-of-this-world effigies for brooches, rings, bracelets and pendants. This is, however, my first bolo tie b...

This necklace is such a pleasure to wear! It drapes very nicely around the neck, measuring 15-1/2” long, with a maximum of ½” in width. It is marked "DANECRAFT STERLING RFG US PAT OFF" and weighs 36.8g. In excellent condition, and we believe it was made between 1940 and 1950. The flowers are lotuses (which are a type of water lily). To Buddists, they represent resurrection, purity and enlightenment. The photos are part of the description; please examine them carefully. Thanks! Shipping, han...

One of Taxco's early maestros, Jose Luis Flores worked for Aguilar as well as for Emma and Miguel Melendez. Carefully crafted and meticulously finished, his jewelry is often based on creations by his more renowned colleagues yet he can be quite creative and original himself. In my opinion, he is at his best within the realm of modernist design and I believe that the bracelet presented here attests to that. Clever cut-outs, beading and layering combine to shape minimalist "masks" that are then "m...

Big and beautifully aged this floral sterling silver Hector Aguilar brooch is representative of the 1940s' love affair with all motifs from nature. The flower is here layered, with deep hand-chased details in the petals and foliage, a strong curving stem and cluster of small beads right at its center. I love the way the bloom is wide open, its face turned to the sun, taking in light and heat and turning it to color, aromas and beauty for our visual enjoyment. The brooch measuress 3 1/4" tall by ...

Big, beautifully crafted and early as is indicated by the low design number this Deco Los Castillo silver brooch is wrought en repoussage in what seems to have been a favored motif among Mexican silversmiths and designers at the time. Fern leaves inspired rings, clamper bracelets, brooches and necklaces and of course, earrings. The design comes in variations enough to ensure that everybody will find a piece that appeals to them. The specific version, however, I have never encountered before. The...