Catalog (326)

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...

A picture is worth a thousand words, they say, and in preparing to offer this fantastic find of mine, I am putting my trust in popular wisdom. When one has been dealing in vintage Mexican silver jewelry for as long a time as I have, one tends to hear that little "devil" in one's ear louder and louder, claiming that there is nothing new or exciting left to be encountered. Thankfully though, life and the old maestros of Taxco still keep some aces hidden up their sleeve. The early sterling and carv...

In the years I have been buying and selling vintage Mexican silver jewelry I have seen many "mask" pieces - this is, after all, one of the "pillars" in the genre's design index and I am also very partial to it and always on the look out for good examples. I have to also admit that seeing jewelry of a certain kind over and over again makes one a little more blasé and hence, more difficult to impress. Yet impressed I was with this astounding combination pin / pendant I am presenting here. Monumen...

I have had this mod Taxco bracelet a few times over the years - also in ring, earrings and brooch form. And I never tire of it! The example at hand is signed by maestro Moreno and it has the beguiling sculpturality that makes the design memorable. Two perfectly crafted silver spheres sitting on stylized leaves - that is all yet it is so much more. Gutsy, slick and eye-catching at the same time - definitely a bracelet for the daring among us. With an inner circumference of 6 7/8" (clasped) it is...

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. When the set came t...

Maestro Velazquez is one of my favorite early Mexican silversmiths. Based on the hallmarks on his work, he was most probably based in Mexico City and his creations are almost always in the so-called Mexico City style of repousse. Very well made and carefully finished, this figural fish brooch is also characterized by a fun, cartoon-ish air that will put a smile on your face every day of the year. Measuring 2 1/4” tall by 1 3/8” wide it weighs 11.0 grams and is marked with maker’s signatu...

A figural repousse Mexican Deco brooch in sterling silver this "portrait" piece bears the signature of early Mexico City maestro M. Velazquez. Over the years of my love affair with vintage Mexican silver jewelry, I have come to know and appreciate Velazquez's work for its "earthiness", its craftsmanship and the interesting designs he created. The specific "mask" motif I have had a few times in the past in necklace, ring and brooch forms but always anonymous. Often described as an Aztec or Maya "...

My second M Velazquez silver brooch for the day, this Mexican Deco repousse "portrait" I have never had (nor, I believe, seen) before. As opposed to the first figural pin, here the "sitter" is shown in profile, his likeness set in a raised frame against a stippled background. Velazquez's repoussage can be very dramatic and in the piece at hand it is also enhanced by deep chasing and oxidation which brings out the sculpturality of the face and the impressive headdress. The brooch measures 2 1/8"...

A contemporary of Matilde Poulat's, maestro M. Velazquez also worked in Mexico City and created jewelry primarily in the repousse style associated with the capital and Matl, its most famous practitioner. Velazquez was a true master of his art - his jewelry is bold and his repoussage confident, sculptural and nicely finished. The inspiration for the fish brooch at hand was obviously an ancient Maya or Aztec glyph or carving. The hand-hammered body is here deeply etched for detail and subsequently...

Maestro Nestor is one of Taxco’s well-kept little secrets. He is not widely known - only the very dedicated vintage Mexican silver jewelry collectors are aware of his work - and his pieces can vary in style and inspiration. Yet when he is at his best, he can be truly spectacular. I believe the necklace at hand is expresses one of those creative moments. Lovingly hand-cut and deeply chased sterling silver surrounds a big faceted amethyst set in a substantial crown setting while the delicate fol...

Fantastic late 1960s – 1970s, I believe based on style, modernist sterling silver and ribbon long cascading circles collar necklace signed by Niels Erik From of Denmark. Scandinavian jewelry is one of my favorite genres – I love the slick, innovative design, the bold minimalism and the “honesty” of materials used so I am always on the look out for good examples. The collar necklace at hand is a stunning creation with its four sets of tangent circles cascading down the collar bone, hangin...

An elaborate sterling silver knot hanging off a classic repousse semi-sphere takes center-stage in this set of vintage Mexican dangle earrings by renowned Taxco maestro Pedro Castillo. I love Pedro Castillo's work for its complexity and layering and the modernist twist it adds to motifs derived from Mexico's rich cultural past. And even though these beauties are of medium length, they do pack a strong visual punch with their strategically applied oxidation and the warm patina they have developed...

Bearing the signature of Pedro Castillo who opened his own workshop in 1940, after having worked for both William Spratling and Hector Aguilar this early Taxco modernist necklace is made using the overlay technique which has also been enhanced by purposeful oxidation. Perfectly finished, it has generous weight and at just a hair less than 16", it is not only a gorgeous piece to wear but it is quite comfortable. Let me end by saying that its abstract design, so representative of Taxco's early mod...

Bearing the signature of Pedro Castillo this bracelet is, for me, a fusion of classic Taxco "arhaeological" as well as modernist elements. The overlay is immaculately crafted - one would never expect less from a Castillo - and the design lends itself to several readings. Is it a stylized butterfly? Two human forms positioned sideways, mirroring each other? An elaboration on ancient Mesoamerican motifs with a mod twist? Be that as it may, the bracelet has an intense visual presence that is only e...

It has been a while since I offered jewelry from Peru and this is the first in a series I will be presenting in the next few weeks. Very reminiscent of the style of Graziella Laffi, the so-called “Spralting of Peru”, the figural combination brooch / pendant at hand is adorned with polychrome enamel, hand-chased details and oxidation. The colors are vibrant and the workmanship of very high quality,. Yet what I like the most is that sense of imminent motion, so intense one can almost see the b...

It's been a while since I offered a vintage Italian silver cimaruta necklace but today I hope to prove the wait worth-while with this gorgeous set from the first decades of the 20th c.. An ancient talisman associated with Southern Italy, the cimaruta was used to protect against the evil eye and in our days, it has been re-invigorated as a powerful wiccan symbol. Signed by a contemporary to the Peruzzi and Coppini Bros Italian maker whom I haven't been able to identify, the pendant has eye-catchi...

Classic in its elegance and the delicate filigree work that embellishes it, this vintage silver and sodalite pendant necklace dates in the first decades of the 20th c. and I believe it is an Italian piece. Very similar to work that came out of the Peruzzi and Coppini workshops of Florence, the necklace is anonymous yet exhibits very high levels of craftsmanship and its finishing is impeccable. I love the stations formed by short lengths of chain, the lace-like quality of the filigree beads and ...

A retail shop in Taxco, according to Bille Hougart, Plateria Cortes is a name also found on some of Enrique Ledesma pieces, most probably because they were sold there. So my first thought when I saw this set of vintage Mexican silver surrealist earrings was that they might have been made by Ledesma. And then it all came back to me - a couple of years ago, I sold three sets of earrings in the same exact style (and actually even a pair like the one at hand) clearly signed for Sigi Pineda. Interest...