This past year seems to have been a Carmen Beckmann year for One Good Eye Silver. And even though I cannot claim it was because of planning, it has not been entirely out of luck either. One of the few female contributors to Mexico’s 20th c Silver Renaissance that we know of, Beckmann’s jewelry are works of a confident designer, impeccably finished and at her best moments, incredibly creative as well...

Symbols of fertility, rebirth, transformation and even immortality snakes and serpents have been favorite jewelry motifs through the centuries and across civilizations. In this Mexican Deco demi signed by the Los Castillo they are formed by silver, copper and brass, their slick bodies coiled around shimmering golden sheen obsidian. This is one of the best examples of the technique I have seen by the Los Castillo - probably because I love snake jewelry...

Fortuno Mota, a talented Taxco maestro who in the 1950s and 1960s produced many of Antonio Pineda’s pieces, signs this stunning set of modernist dangle earrings. Crafted in Antonio’s signature fine .970 alloy, the pair reminds me of slender flutes as they elegantly hang off geometric stations with stone inlay. The inlay and the beads in which the dangles end seem to be made of azur-malachite with the second component responsible for the predominantly green and brown hues...

These Antonio Pineda earrings have a silver wave design with emerald cut amethysts. Bearing the "Silver by Tono" hallmark which was used 1948-1953, this deco design is rarely seen. Each earring features four channel set amethyst gemstones, all well matched in color. The repoussé silver settings require the most skilled of silversmiths...

A rare hand wrought modernist link bracelet and matching earrings in Sterling Silver by the well respected jewelry teacher and author, Philip Morton. He is the author of the book "Contemporary Jewelry" where he demonstrates jewelry making techniques and highlights talented and noteworthy artisans. He helped found the Society of North American Goldsmiths in 1968.

Bracelet measures 7 1/4" long and 5/8" at the widest. Hook closure fastens securely...

Habitually referred to as the “Spratling of Peru”, Italian-born Graziella Laffi spearheaded Peru’s own Silver Renaissance in the 1950s. Based on ingenious re-interpretations of ancient Inca motifs, her jewelry, decorative objects and holloware are avidly sought after by committed collectors for their impeccable craftsmanship and inspired design...

Originally a painter who in the 1930s moved to Mexico to participate in the country’s cultural scene, Bernice Goodspeed quickly moved into designing and selling her own jewelry out of the store she and her fellow-artist husband Carl Pappe opened in Taxco. Bernice’s work does not come up often and I am very excited to have found this repousse necklace by her...

Sleek modernism and heavy sterling combine in this Sigi Pineda bracelet which seems to be one of the maestro’s earlier creations and a relatively harder piece to find as well. Perfect finishing, generous weight, a blissful marriage of glistening silver and dark oxidation and inspired design, all features that make Sigi jewelry exceptional can be seen at work here. What a beauty indeed… The bracelet has a 6 3/4” inner circumference (clasped)and its width varies between 1 1/16″ and 5/8"...

I love pearls and when they are nested in an Antonio Pineda fine silver modernist setting, I consider myself in heaven! All the more so when it’s three glorious, softly shimmering pearls we are talking about. Graduated in size and each one a different hue, they are comfortably sitting in their precious channel, as if their only concern is to showcase the variety of nacre colors. The ring is a sz 8 1/2 US and 7/16” wide...

Possibly my most favorite Carmen Beckmann ring design (an example lives in my jewelry box), her Etruscan style domed creation presented here is an ode to wire-work and micro-beading. It rises regally above the finger yet because of all those curved, glistening surfaces, it never creates problems to the wearer like most rings that are so high do...

Hand-wrought in its entirety and a design that I have never encountered before, this early Mexican silver repousse necklace is an anonymous beauty. Its early date is attested to by the fact that it's strung on cotton thread (one of the earliest Aguilar "lyre" necklaces I sold was strung on cotton as well) and has a spring ring clasp. Not signed for maker nor metal content or origin, it is adorned by an elongated cascabela attached to the central station in an adorable yet naive way...

The combination of fine purity silver with silky, shimmering pearls is among my favorite when it comes to Antonio Pineda’s work. And the modernist floral brooch I am presenting here is a superb example not only of the renowned Taxco maestro’s exceptional sense of design but also of the quality of materials he used. I love the fluid, curvaceous body of the elongated “pod” and the tender forcefulness (I know, a contradiction in terms, right?) with which the stamens emerge out of it...

Stern and solemn, a gorgeous example of classic Mexican Deco lapidary work, the chrysoprase “mask” centering the silver pendant at hand looks dignified and at ease, completely unaffected by the weight of its ornate headdress. The hefty, entirely hand-wrought chain that accompanies it is, I believe, original to the necklace and perfectly reflects the pendant’s heaviness...

Impressive takes on a whole different meaning when the work of the Los Castillo taller is concerned - and the wide, exuberantly vibrant floral and foliate repousse bracelet I am presenting here proves the point. Continuing in the 1940s’ spirit that called for designs derived from nature in jewelry production, this piece is a celebration of everything verdant - organic in an unexpected way, full of movement, reaching for the sunlight, twisting and twirling with the wind. A bracelet worthy of th...

Hallmarks date this Hector Aguilar necklace pre-1948. Detachable pendant is original to the V chain, and this piece is collector quality. A book piece in "Silver Masters of Mexico", there shown with an amethyst pendant. The pendant here is a dense green stone with swirls of various hues - absolutely gorgeous. Measures 15 1/2" without the tongue portion of the clasp. Pendant is 1 1/2" x 1 1/4". Signed and hallmarked on both chain and pendant with the conjoined HA, Taxco 940. Quite substant...

Jewelry hosting carved stone hearts in silver settings was very popular in the Mexican Deco period. Teased out of jasper and agate and oftentimes even dyed calcite, the hearts are unfailingly curvaceous as if pulsing with life, their sculpturality shamelessly inviting the touch. The carvings usually dominate the piece with the silver-work providing discreet framing and even though the motif was taken up again in the post-1980 period, the later examples lack the vivacity of the old pieces. Here i...

When life hands you lemons, you make lemonade and when it hands you an orphan cuff link, you have it converted into a ring. I have always been very partial to pieces of jewelry that would normally come in pairs but lost their partner over the course of their adventurous life. Conversions, though a dedicated, purist collector’s nightmare, are to me a welcome way of prolonging the journey of an otherwise shunned piece by providing it with a new purpose, a new opportunity to be enjoyed and admire...

This mid-century bracelet is the work of Salvador Teran. It's a gorgeous modernist bracelet with two gold sheen obsidian stones set within eight point stars. Measures a closed, wearable length of 6 1/2" with a width of 1 1/2". Weight is 48.5 grams. Signed and hallmarked "Salvador Sterling Mexico", with the design # 156 and eagle assay 36. Collector quality. Closure is tight and secure, and original safety chain is present.