Rocking Horse Ranch — Southwest Jewelry Shop & Marks

Name-card placeholder — historic shop-mark imagery to follow. © Turquoise Skies Inc.

Jewelry shop and production workshop · Phoenix, Arizona · active c. 1970s–1980s · Southwest Jewelry Guide

Overview

Rocking Horse Ranch was a jewelry production shop based in Phoenix, Arizona, that employed a number of Navajo silversmiths during the 1970s and 1980s. The shop produced traditional and stamp-work silver jewelry, with individual pieces often marked with both the silversmith's personal hallmark and the Rocking Horse Ranch shop stamp.

Hougart documents the shop's roster of employed smiths as including Fidel Bahe, Thomas Curtis, Wilson Jim, Curtis Pete, and Patrick Taylor. Additional smiths recorded in individual Hougart entries as having worked there include Jerry Begay, Russ Rockbridge, and Thomas Jim's brother Wilson Jim (born 1949).

The shop mark

The Rocking Horse Ranch stamp appears as a secondary mark alongside individual silversmiths' hallmarks on pieces produced for the shop. Collectors should note that the "AR" mark used by silversmith Ambrose Roanhorse in the 1950s (formed into a rocking horse shape) predates the Rocking Horse Ranch shop and is unrelated to it — Hougart specifically warns of fake hallmarks on Roanhorse pieces.

Artists connected to Rocking Horse Ranch

Patrick Taylor (Navajo, active since 1980s) worked at Rocking Horse Ranch and is documented for traditional and deep stamp-work; his marks are PT, PL TAYLOR, and PL Taylor (script), sometimes with a cowboy boot. Work may be stamped for the Rocking Horse Ranch.

Wilson Jim (born 1949; Navajo, active since 1960s) is associated with the Rocking Horse Ranch stamp in Hougart. His brother Thomas Jim also worked at Rocking Horse Ranch; Hougart confirms the two are distinct artists with different marks despite their close relationship. Wilson Jim's mark appears as W. J. or W. JIM, sometimes with the Rocking Horse Ranch stamp.

Jerry Begay (Navajo, active since 1970s) is recorded in Hougart for set stones and appliqué work; he worked at Rocking Horse Ranch and his marks are J B (conjoined) and J W B.

Russ Rockbridge (1958–; Navajo, active since 1980s) worked at Rocking Horse Ranch in the 1980s and may be stamped for the shop. His marks are RR (used at Rocking Horse Ranch) and R. ROCKBRIDGE.

Curtis Pete (Navajo) is documented for cluster work, set stones, and stamp work; he was a former worker at Rocking Horse Ranch. Fidel Bahe is also listed as a Rocking Horse Ranch smith in Hougart's shop roster. Clifton Joe is noted in Hougart enrichment files as having worked for Tommy Singer in the early 1970s making chip inlay, and the Singer family workshop stamp appears on pieces associated with Rocking Horse Ranch.

References

• Hougart, Bille. Native American and Southwestern Silver Hallmarks, 5th ed. Schiffer Publishing, 2022. Shops section (Rocking Horse Ranch entry); individual entries for Patrick Taylor, Wilson Jim, Jerry Begay, Russ Rockbridge, Curtis Pete.