Catalog (323)

A luxurious tassel, its sterling threads spilling out of a brushed silver bead, catches the eye instantly in this vintage Mexican charm bracelet. A classic rendition of the specific design, it has a thick twist rope chain that has acquired a soft, silky glow over the years. Striding the divide between Deco and Retro jewelry, this is a veritable statement bracelet and if you decide to add the matching earrings and lariat necklace you see in one of the photos to it, you will not be disappointed. T...

One of Salvador Teran’s original designs that is difficult to find especially in the form of earrings, the “crouching man” is also a favorite of mine. Its rarity makes copies by Salvador's contemporary maestros avidly sought after and I am happy to present here an example by “3m”, a Taxco workshop known for emulating the renowned modernist’s work. Sterling silver, amethyst and strategically applied oxidation combine in this modernist interpretation of an ancient Aztec motif. The ear...

A carefully crafted copy of one of Hubert Harmon's Mexican designs, this fabulous sterling silver and amethyst belt buckle is anonymous yet, as quite often is the case, the lack of a signature does not affect the piece's quality and beauty. Based on the workmanship I suspect this may be a Casa Maya example. Casa Maya issued many of Harmon's designs in brass primarily yet they did make them in sterling as well and quite often pieces in their parures went out in the marked without full hallmarks. ...

Molten caramel golds and shimmering coffee browns are reflected in warmly mellowed silver in this modernist Mexican pendant necklace with neck ring. Very Scandinavian in design, necklaces of this type are not very common in the world of vintage Mexican jewelry and I consider myself even luckier to have come upon this exquisite example because it is also a pre-1980 creation. Though the necklace could have been crafted at any point between 1948 and 1980, for me it has a distinct early 1970s vibe a...

"Like mother like daughter" (and why not? father and son as well) is what came to mind when I saw this sweet Mexican silver and turquoise "baby" cuff bracelet. Beautifully stamped with ornamentation in the Native American / Southwestern style and centered by a rich blue turquoise stone with warm dark brown matrix the cuff is, of course, also ideal for those of us out there with very small wrists. Over the years of my love-affair with vintage Mexican jewelry, I have come upon "baby size" cuffs bu...

There are some pieces of jewelry that simply defy any effort to photograph them. And this stunning Taxco modernist sterling silver and blue spinel hinged bangle is one of them - a really tough one at that too! I have faced this challenge once before in the past and the “culprit” is available here as well, only that one is by Enrique Ledesma and adorned with color-change sapphires. Almost identical yet bearing a signature which I will suggest belongs to Miguel Melendez (the mark is very faint...

Stunning Taxco modernist sterling silver pendant necklace this set seems to borrow stylistically from both Antonio Pineda (in its use of the black velvet cord) and the Los Ballesteros workshops (in featuring that huge gemstone). The signature it bears, however, attributes it to a listed yet still unidentified Mexican maestro whose work I have had before but about whom we don't really know that much. The pendant's good weight, sweeping, free-flowing curves and the crown-set citrine (according to ...

Pendant necklaces are a favorite of mine - I love their versatility and the fact that I can layer them whichever way I want. Luckilly, there is a fabulous selection within the world of vintage Mexican silver jewelry to choose from but I feel particularly lucky to have come upon an example of a classic Taxco design that is, however, smaller in scale than pendants of this design usually in. Set with a color-change sapphire (often, and mistakenly, referred to as “alexandrite”) the “Aztec Sun�...

Made in the 1960s, this vintage Mexican sterling silver bracelet consists of figural disks developing in a row defined by lengths of double-woven, thick chain. I have seen this combination featuring three different kinds of disk designs. While here we have depictions of the country's history as well as symbols of its old religion (a jaguar warrior portrait, Quetzalcoatl, Mexico's state Eagle) the specific bracelet design can be found with Mexican coins or representations of the zodiac cycle. I l...

Based on Salvador Teran's sought-after "dancers" design, the bracelet I am presenting here was crafted in the period the renowned Mexican modernist was active by one of his contemporary Taxco maestros. Absolute minimalism, strong graphics and a sense of unencumbered, fluid motion characterize the figural overlay which dominates the shadow-box construction of the three central links. Just as in Salvador's original there are curve-topped disks and stars scattered in the frames, elements which make...

Highly stylized foliate links cut out of thick gauge silver sheet and deeply hand-chased comprise this modernist Taxco sterling bracelet. The central station houses a faceted glass gem, its crystal clear, icy blue color eye-catching and evocative of wintry landscapes. This is a piece signed by one of those early Mexican maestros about whom we don’t know much more than where they worked and when they were active. The jewelry they created is their legacy, however, and judging by the craftsmanshi...

I love zodiac jewelry and thankfully so did the old Mexican maestros! Yet over the years I have noticed that no matter what their form (rings, brooches or bracelets), they are being snatched up with increasing fervor. So saying that they are becoming more difficult to find would not be an understatement, especially for rings which are an already challenging area of collecting in the vintage Mexican jewelry world. It is therefore understandable that I am thrilled to have come upon this mid-centur...

It's been a very long time since I offered a Mexican clamper bracelet and I am happy to be starting again with a classic Taxco design, this repousse and shadowbox "Quetzalcoatl" example. The maestro who signs it I am familiar with - he worked in Taxco and it seems that clamper bracelets were one of his favorite forms. Always beautifully executed, his repoussage has good sculpturality and finishing and his jewelry, albeit not as heavy as those of the big talleres, has the weight necessary to impa...

One of the most beautiful early Taxco brooches I have had over the years, this glorious butterfly combines delicate repoussage and the marrying of copper and 980 silver with a richly colored piece of azur-malachite. Copper-plating fine silver is not something everything would think to do - after all, one is a precious metal, the other, though very important throughout history, is not. The Mexicans, however, at least some of them, the famous Los Castillo included, seemed to have found the techniq...

Slick, a modernist dream-come-true, crafted with the highest quality of craftsmanship and studded with the most beautiful tiger's eye you have ever seen, this slick Mexican silver necklace was made in Taxco in the 1950s-60s. It is made up of graduated links in a design that has also been used by maestros like the unsurpassed Felipe Martinez, and the stones glow like melted gold! Classically elegant and a pleasure to wear the necklace measures 14 3/5" long and its width varies between 13/16" and...

Very much in the style associated with Matilde Poulat and often referred to as "Mexico City repousse" this sweet little silver "serpent scales" bracelet is adorned with an amethyst cabochon in its central station. An early example of this "school", it is an honest attempt to emulate the "grand dame" of Mexican silver jewelry albeit in a more demure, smaller scale than most of Matl's work. I like to think of its maker as a young apprentice, impressed by Poulat's genius, patiently working on impro...

One of Taxco’s two “Miguels”, Miguel Melendez started his career with William Spratling at Las Delicias, moved on to work with the Los Castillo and later Margot de Taxco and in the early 1950s opened his own workshop. A talented modernist with deep roots in Mexico’s rich archaeological history, he loved combining silver with hard- and semi-precious stones and excelled in two-sided pendants that married stone or shell inlay with abstract overlay on highly oxidized surfaces. The figural pi...

Maestro Ocampo's work I have come to appreciate over the years for its good craftsmanship and attention to finishing yet it's been a long time since I offered a piece by him. Quite often his jewelry is inspired by the creations of the bigger talleres and if I am not mistaken, the bracelet at hand is based on a Los Castillo design. The technique employed is also something the Los Castillo tried their hand at. This is not a straight forward "mixed metals" bracelet in which alternating links made o...