Julian Fred — Hopi Silversmith

Name-card placeholder — hallmark imagery to follow.

Hopi · documented in the T.Skies hallmark reference library

Julian Fred is a Hopi silversmith active since the 1990s, working in overlay. He is the brother of Perry Fred and the son of Nathan Fred, Jr.

His father Nathan Fred, Jr. (born 1942; Hopi) is separately documented in the Hougart record: active since the 1960s in overlay and cast work, silver and gold, possibly marked for Hopicrafts. Nathan Fred, Jr.'s marks include N F (conjoined) and NJ R (conjoined).

OCR note: The slug "julian-fred" correctly reflects the Hougart name order — Julian Fred (given name Julian, surname Fred), confirmed explicitly in the entry text.

Overlay is the defining Hopi silversmithing technique, in which a design is cut through a top sheet of silver and soldered onto a darkened backing sheet, creating a two-tone relief effect closely associated with the Hopi Guild tradition.

The Mark

"J F (chopped, conjoined)" — Hougart, Bille. Native American and Southwestern Silver Hallmarks, 5th ed. (2022).

The mark J F has the initials chopped and conjoined — a characteristic Hopi mark style in which letterforms share strokes.

References

Hougart, Bille. Native American and Southwestern Silver Hallmarks, 5th ed. Schiffer Publishing, 2022. Approx. p. ~14508.

Know more about this artist? Contact T.Skies.