17+ozt Navajo CONCHO BELT Tufa Sand Cast Sterling Silver GEM Turquoise in Buckle

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17+ozt Navajo CONCHO BELT Tufa Sand Cast Sterling Silver GEM Turquoise in Buckle:
$721.00

TraditionalNavajo Sterling Silver Concho Belt

Tufa Cast

with a Gem Grade Morenci Mine TurquoiseStone

11 Conchos + 1 Belt Buckle

Dimensions

11 Conchos

2.18\" Diameter

1 Belt Buckle

2.45\" X 1.9\"

New Custom Brown Leather Belt is 46\" longand has no holes. It is .95\" wide.

It may be modified to accomodate a waist of up to about 43\"+ by adding an additional hole

548.6grams= 17.64 Troyounces Total Weight

15+ Troy ounces Metal weight

The back straps are also made fromSterling Silver and not the usual Copper

The measurements are approximate and the $100 Bill and Quarter are for scale and not for sale

TraditionalNavajo Tufa Cast Sterling Silver Concho Belt w/ Morenci Mine Stone

Here is a fine old set of Navajo Tufa Cast Sterling Silver Conchas on a high quality New Custom Brown leather belt. As you may already know Tufa Casting is a very laborious and even dangerous process of making silver jewelry that was developed late in the 19th century by the Navajo. It is similar to traditional sand casting but uses ancient compressed volcanic ash (Tufa) as the mold in which hot molten Silver is poured. Because of thermal shock it is typical that the Tufa mold can only be used once. After the piece is cooled, the \"real work\" of filing and polishing begins. Because of the factors mentioned,NavajoTufa Cast Jewelryis relatively rare and becoming more so all the time.The technique lends a charm to anything produced and is appreciated by knowlegable collectors of Native Jewelry.

Thisis an iconic Navajo Sterling Silver Concho Belt. It is not marked by the maker with a hallmark, and it is Not marked \"Sterling\",but is itguaranteed to be Sterling Silver and authentic. Toyo at Dark Star Leather here in Tucson, Arizona made the custom Brown Leather Belt for this set of conchas. It is new and ready to customize just to fit you.

I can not be certain, but I believe that theTurquoise in the Belt buckleis from the Morenci Mine here in SouthernArizona. They pulled the last of itout of the ground in 2007 when Phelps Dodge took over the operation of the Copper Mine.At that point the Turqoise from the mine had been mostly depleated (see* reference below). That will be all we see of this popular Turquoise when the hoards run out.If it captures you attention, I\'d love to find it a happy home...

If you like Navajo Concho Belts as much as I do, please feel free to take a look at themany that I have for sale on ...

Iship anywhere in the United States for free. I will pack this carefully for you so that the conchos do not rub up against each other in transit and it willget to you in the same condition that you see in the pictures.Insurance is included, of course...

I thankYou and look forward to sharing a good experience!

Recomended Reference Books - Thisartist isreferenced if there is a page # shown below

\"AMERICAN INDIAN JEWELRY I\" - Gregory Schaaf - page

* \"AMERICAN INDIAN JEWELRY II: A-L\" - Gregory Schaaf- page 29-30(Morenci) *

\"HALLMARKS OF THE SOUTHWEST\"- Barton Wright - page

\"THE LITTLE BOOK OF SOUTHWESTERN SILVER\" -Billie Hougart - page

\"ZUNI JEWELRY\" - Theda and Michael Bassman \"ZUNI THE ART AND THE

PEOPLEVOLUMES 1-3\" - Barbara& Ed Bell- Volume

**\"INDIAN SILVERWORK OF THE SOUTHWEST, ILLUSTRATED -VOLUME1\" - pages 72-94

**This work is for general historical reference on the History of Navajo Conchas and Buckles

(Inventory ReferenceOnly C34)