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A Field Guide to Southwest Jewelry · by Mateo James

Pins, Brooches, and Pendants in Southwest Silversmithing

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Pins, Brooches, and Pendants in Southwest Silversmithing

Pins, brooches, and pendants appear among the earliest documented forms in Southwest silver — "rings, bracelets, brooches, conchas, and hair plates" are recorded from the 1860s-era Ute and Plains trade network that preceded Navajo silversmithing. By the 1880s, Navajo smiths were making silver buttons for clothing and larger ornaments for leather, including pin and brooch forms. This page covers the full range: manta pins, brooches, standalone pendants, and drop forms not addressed elsewhere in the guide.

Mateo's Field Notes

The documentation of pin and brooch forms in the earliest silversmithing record is brief but present. Adair notes that the Ute and Southern Plains tribes wore "rings, bracelets, brooches, conchas, and hair plates" — the brooch appearing alongside the more heavily documented forms. By the 1860s record, "buttons and hoop earrings" complete the listed repertoire; pins and brooches occupied the same functional space as buttons in fastening garments.

Rosnek, writing in 1976, documents "silver buttons for clothing and larger ones for leather baldrics" from the 1880s era — the larger forms shading from button into brooch or pin as the surface area grew. The manta pin — a large shawl pin for securing the traditional woven garment — is documented in Bedinger and Adair as an early functional form. Bedinger's plate documentation includes "dress ornaments" in butterfly and other forms from the 1935-40 period, showing pin and brooch work in the Zuni tradition using turquoise setting and elaborate fabrication.

The pendant form in Southwest silver takes several routes. The naja as a standalone pendant — detached from a squash blossom necklace or worn solo on a cord — is the most formally significant; it has its own entry in this guide. Coin pendants occupy a different historical space: Navajo silversmiths worked with Mexican silver coins, sometimes converting them directly into ornaments by filing the edges, punching suspension holes, or mounting them in fabricated silver bezels. The coin retained the notching on its edge in some pieces, as Adair documents: silver bosses formed from coins retained the notching on the perimeter. These coin-derived pendants represent the moment before Navajo smiths had reliable sheet silver supply — improvisation that became aesthetic.

Drop pendants — single-stone pieces on a bale or loop — are documented across both Navajo and Pueblo traditions. The individual blossom form from a squash blossom necklace, worn separately, is a documented variant; some collectors seek individual blossoms as pendants independent of their original necklace context. The pendant form also appears in cross shapes, documented in early Zuni work: "Silver necklace with cross and naja, early Zuni" appears in Bedinger's plate documentation, showing the cross as a pendant within the silver bead necklace tradition.

The construction of pins and brooches in the Southwest tradition follows the same logic as other fabricated forms: sheet silver cut to shape, decorated with stamps or repoussage, set with turquoise where the design allows, and fitted with a hand-made catch mechanism soldered to the back. The catch and pin-stem on early pieces are typically forged from wire or thin rod stock. Later pieces may show commercial catch hardware soldered to a handmade face — a hybrid construction common from the 1940s onward in production silversmithing.

Collector's Handbook: Pins, Brooches, and Pendants

  • Pin mechanism assessment: The catch and pin-stem are the most vulnerable parts of a brooch. Check that the stem is straight and the catch closes securely. A repaired or replaced mechanism is common on old pieces — document it, as it does not necessarily diminish value but affects presentation.
  • Manta pin identification: A manta pin is long relative to its head — the shaft extends several inches, designed to pass through thick woven fabric. The head is typically decorated; the shaft is plain. Do not confuse a manta pin with a modern bar pin, which has a different proportional logic.
  • Coin pendant construction: Examine the coin surface for filing, stamping, or setting work that post-dates the coin's mint date. A coin pendant with a soldered bezel mount is a deliberate fabrication; one with simply a punched suspension hole is a more minimal intervention. Both are documented in the tradition.
  • Drop pendants: The bale (suspension loop) on a drop pendant should be original to the piece. A replaced bale shows solder marks inconsistent with the pendant's finish and patina. An original bale integrates visually with the pendant's design.
  • Zuni dress ornaments: Bedinger documents "butterfly" dress ornaments with turquoise setting from the 1935-40 period. These are brooch forms in the Zuni fabrication tradition — elaborate, symmetric, fully stone-set. They differ from Navajo brooch work, which tends toward single stones and stamp decoration on plain silver ground.
  • What to look for: Patina consistent with the claimed age on both the face and the back of the piece (the back often shows the most honest patina), original hardware, and no evidence of alterations that would indicate the piece was converted from another form (e.g., a concha with a brooch mechanism soldered on).

Makers Known for This Form

Related Links

Browse necklaces and pendant forms at T.Skies.

References

  • Adair, John. The Navajo and Pueblo Silversmiths. University of Oklahoma Press, 1944.
  • Bedinger, Margery. Indian Silver: Navajo and Pueblo Jewelers. University of New Mexico Press, 1973.
  • Rosnek, Carl, and Joseph Stacey. Skystone and Silver. 1976.

By Mateo James | T.Skies Co-Op Field Guide