KIRK SMITH Turquoise Bracelet Kingman Navajo Sterling Silver RIP Q

When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

KIRK SMITH Turquoise Bracelet Kingman Navajo Sterling Silver RIP Q :
$2499.95

WELCOME to High Desert Turquoise!

Kirk Smith was a self made man who began his working careeras a miner in the dangerous uranium mines that once were active on the Navajoreservation. Built like a bear but friendly and extroverted, he sported tworather imposing tattoos on his neck that seemed far less imposing when he smiledwhich was often.

He came from a well known family of silversmiths andapprenticed with his then brother-in-law, the late legendary Harry Morgan wherehe learned the skills and techniques to create fine revivalist Navajo jewelry.Artistically he came into his own in the early years of the last decade, andhis career skyrocketed like a Roman candle until a handful of greedy sellers literally put him out of business in their race to the bottom withtheir selling prices. At that time, was the biggest single market for hiswork. Other sellers quit buying his work. New pieces sat unsold of traders\'shelves so no new orders were placed.

By the middle of the last decade, Kirk had fallen on veryhard times, but product diversification, new designs, and a new marketing planbrought him back. At the time of his death on September 17, 2012 in AlbuquerqueNM, Kirk had arguably replaced Harry Morgan as the reigning practitioner ofclassic revivalist Navajo design.

Stopping at a sandwich ship before returning home to Grantsafter buying jewelry making supplies in Albuquerque, Kirk, his wife, and cousinartist Calvin Martinez watched as a truck hit his truck in the parking lot.Kirk left his table and quickly reached the parking lot only to see the youngdriver laugh at him and attempted to leave the scene. Kirk jumped on the hoodof the car hoping to stop the driver and wait for police to arrive. Instead,the driver sped off knocking Kirk off the hood onto the pavement where hereceived fatal head injuries.

Later that evening, police arrested a 16 year old IsletaIndian man for drunk driving and found evidence linking his truck with theincident at the sandwich shop. He\'s currently charged with vehicular homicide.

UPDATE: The driver who backed up over Kirk, Tyler Jiron, wassentenced in August 2013 to 90 days in a treatment center, two years probation,and ordered to pay restitution to Smith\'s family, which Curley said hasn\'thappened. Kirk\'s family is justifiably extremely upset because they feeljustice hasn\'t been served. His Daughter, Natilda Curley, said the driverhasn\'t held accountable for the damage he did so many people.

Lessons abound in this tragic story, and it\'s both obviousand trite to say that Native American jewelry world has lost one of itsbrightest stars. But since it\'s true, it needs to be said.

Kirk lived for several years in the Crown Point, New Mexicobefore moving south to Grants. He was an independent, self-employed artist whodirectly marketed his art to many traders in New Mexico and Arizona.

His work went up in price at least once each year, and withenormous price increases in both turquoise and sterling silver in the last fewyears, his beautiful pieces would be an excellent investment not only in termsof their high quality turquoise and precious metal but because of the acclaimedartist who created them.

If the character of turquoise is an important factor whenyou buy high end pieces, you\'ll love Kirk\'s interpretation of the traditionalthree stone row bracelet. The use of overlaid twisted rope sun rays is arelatively new motif that I believe Kirk created when he did the jewelry thatone of the stars of the \"The Book of Eli\" film wore to movie\'spremiere in Albuquerque.

This traditional row bracelet with an old pawn finish(mimics the appearance and patina of naturally aged sterling silver) featuresthree rectangular high grade Kingman turquoise stones all with absolutelyoutstanding caramel brown and honey gold matrix that gives each stone superiorcharacter. Sterling silver rope overlayssurround each turquoise stone, and Kirk added pairs of hand made sterlingsilver rain drop beads at the corners of the center stone. Surrounding thethree bezels is a series of various sized twisted rope coiled sun rays whichabsolutely \'make\' this bracelet!

The rectangular center Kingman stone measures just a hairless than 1¼\" by 7/8ths,\" the two side Kingman turquoise stonesmeasure 1 and 1/8th\" by 7/16ths.\" The Kingman mining areas arelocated inside the Kingman copper mining district in western Arizona. Turquoiseentrepreneur Marty Colbaugh bought mining rights several years ago anddiscovered several new wonderful veins of excellent grade turquoise.

The three solid back bezels are mounted on a substantial(each wire is 1/8th\" wide and thick) five triangle wire open braceletframe that rejoins near the terminals. This large bracelet is 2\" wide inthe center and gradually tapers to a width of 11/16ths\" at the terminals.It has an interior measurement of 5¼\" and an opening gap of 1.\" Ifyour wrist is 6¼\" to 6½\" in circumference, this should fit withlittle or no very, very careful adjustment of the shanks and/or terminals (bysomeone stronger than I am :-) but the terminals and shank are adjustable).

Kirk Smith\'s work is considered collector and investmentquality.

Kirk’s third generation script hallmark and sterling stampare located on one of the center wires.

International buyers: Please see list of excluded countries below before purchasing.

Payment is expected within seven days of purchase unless you make other mutually agreed on arrangements.

International Custom Fees and Duties: Import duties, taxes, and any import fees are not included in the item price or shipping charges. These charges if any are the buyer\'s responsibility. Please check with your country\'s customs office to determine what these additional costs will be prior to offerding/buying. These charges are normally collected by the delivering shipping company or post office -- please do not confuse them for additional shipping charges.

Returns: Sales are not made on an approval basis and you are expected to keep you what you’ve agreed to buy except for major misrepresentation or major defect. Returns must be approved in advance and then return shipped insured within 7 business days of receipt at your expense, and the item you received from me must be returned in its original condition or full credit less all original shipping charges will not be given. Any damaged or altered items will not be accepted.

Questions: Questions about this item only, please, from serious buyers. I don\'t accept offers, do free appraisals, free research, put members in touch with artists, sell wholesale, or take custom orders soplease don\'t email me about these issues, out of idle curiosity, or send questions not pertaining to this item.

Extra Photos: Please remember that people buy millions of dollars’ worth of products each month in this country from catalogues where generally there’s only one photograph and about three short descriptive lines. Sorry, no additional photos are available for this item.

Making Smart Buying Choices: I am a proud member of the Indian Arts and Crafts Association (IACA) whose members must pledge to sell authentic Native American art and represent it accurately. Only a very, very, very small Native American jewelry sellers have been accepted for membership. If you care whether the jewelry you buy is authentic Native American, please click on the View Seller\'s Other Items link in the box at the top of the page at right. Remember, choose wisely. Save for a while if necessary to buy the best pieces you can possibly afford. Don’t just spend money, invest it in good quality items that have possible future investment potential. It\'s against federal law to misrepresent foreign made jewelry as Native American.Protect this investment and assure the Native American authenticity of your purchases by requiring a Certificate of Authenticity.

Authenticity and Provenance: This is a brand new rather than a previously owned item, and aCertificate of Authenticity guaranteeing its Native American origin is included. Everything but pawn sterling silver jewelry and stone necklaces are cleaned and polished with tarnish retardant polish before shipping so that it arrives looking sparkling clean and odor free.

U.S. Domestic Shipping: Next business day FREE USPS Priority Mail shipping with 2-3 business day delivery, FREE USPS insurance, and FREE delivery or signature confirmation except weekends, holidays, buying trips, family emergencies, or severe weather from a non-smoker on receipt of payment before 3 pm Central Time on business days which considers as Monday - Friday. USPS Express Mail with overnight delivery to most but not all locations available at cost -- price varies by item shape, size, and weight of your purchase(s) -- please email for a quote. You also agree to pay within the prescribed period of time and, in the event the parcel is lost or damaged, YOU UNCONDITIONALLY AGREE to fulfill USPS requirements or those of the private insurance carrier so that an insurance claim be filed. For USPS claims this includes presenting the box, contents, and damaged item(s) to the Post Office and then sending me a signed USPS claim form. On receipt of the USPS claim form or letter, your entire payment will be immediately refunded in full.

International Shipping: I ship using either USPS International First Class Mail or Express Mail International. Please remember that PayPal REQUIRES trackable shipping for international shipments, and the least expensive USPS trackable shipping method is Express Mail. Cost usually depends on parcel weight and destination soplease request a price quote before purchase. A small handling fee will be charged for international orders.International buyers UNCONDITIONALLY AGREE to send the insurance company a letter describing the loss or damage when you asked to. If you purchase this item, then you have agreed to a legally binding contract that includes all necessary assistance in filing an insurance claim. On receipt of the USPS claim form or letter, your entire payment will be immediately refunded in full.

PayPal E-Checks: When you pay with a PayPal e-check, it takes several days for your check to be cleared so shipment will be delay until it‘s approved. If you want or need immediate shipment, then please use the credit or debit card option with PayPal.

Sales tax: Only Kansas residents must pay Kansas sales tax.

CORRECT Email Address:Your ISP’s or your email’s spam filter can and sometimes does prevent delivery of many emails. If you don’t hear from me, this is probably why so please don‘t think you’re being ignored because every purchase and payment is acknowledged. If you don’t hear from me, please check your spam/trash directory. Please make sure your current correct email address is registered with both and PayPal to ensure good communications.

© Photos and product description: Photos and description are the intellectual property of this seller, are copyrighted, and you may not use, download, or reproduce them under any circumstances for any reason. Plagiarism (copying and using my text and photos) is illegal -- please respect and obey the plagiarism laws. Thank you.