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Department of

Anthropology

Exhibits

 

Silver and Stones: American Indian Jewelry

 

Exhibit open September 15, 2011, through May 31, 2012

Gallery open on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays

1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., or by appointment

Gallery closed on all University holidays

Serra Hall 214A

 

 

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Silver and Stones: American Indian Jewelry Silver and Stones: American Indian Jewelry Silver and Stones: American Indian Jewelry Silver and Stones: American Indian Jewelry

 

The native peoples of the New World have been fashioning natural elements into personal ornamentation for millennia. In the North American desert Southwest, the first distinguishable jewelry forms began around 300 AD with the rise of the Mogollon, Ancestral Pueblo, and Hohokam groups.  During this period the Southwestern American Indians produced jewelry on small and large scales. Regional centers of the Ancestral Puebloans, like Chaco Canyon (900AD-1200 AD), have yielded impressive examples of delicately worked turquoise beads and mosaics. Chetro Ketl, a Chacoan great house, produced more than 17,000 turquoise beads found stashed in niches of the site’s Great Kiva wall.

The descendants of these faded regional superpowers influenced the iconic Southwestern jewelry featured in our exhibit. Spanish Colonial pressure in manufacturing technologies forever changed native production methods. The Southwestern natives adopted the new technique of silversmithing. By the 1860s, the Navajos had mastered the skill and began producing works for sale. Entrepreneur Fred Harvey took the opportunity provided by railroad expansion to establish tourist facilities throughout the West, notably at Grand Canyon National Park.  His company promoted the sale of hand-crafted pieces along the rail line and at his hotel chain, thus increasing the demand for American Indian jewelry.  

American Indians use a variety of materials for their signature jewelry. Supply choices depend on the tribe’s history and physical location. The Navajo, Zuni, and Pueblo Indians are recognized for silver and stones. The Hopi are known for their distinct overlay style using few or no stones, while Zuni artists are famous for their inlaid stone work and channel technique. Many Pueblo Indians produce jewelry with inlaid stones in mosaic patterns. Traditional materials are silver and turquoise. However, increasingly exotic elements such as African sugalite, Baltic amber, and Rosarita (gold slag) are appearing.

Turquoise is the most identifiable stone in American Indian jewelry and is found in isolated regions of the United States. In the Southwest, ample materials enabled the Navajo, Zuni, and Pueblo Indians to become master artisans. Turquoise comes in a variety of colors from soft blue to dark green, and often has beautiful matrices of gold and black.

Silversmithing is generally believed to have emerged in the 1800s as Navajo artists began to practice it under the influence and tutelage of Spanish settlers. Silver is malleable and durable and is worked to obtain different shapes and levels of shine. In the early years, an opaque tone was desired; now many artists prefer higher degrees of polishing.

Another highly-prized setting for jewelry is coral, which is the skeletal remains of marine animals. It is found in both fresh and salt water environments and comes in several colors; dark red is the rarest and most desirable. Coral can be cabochon cut, made into beads, or chipped to be used in mosaic patterns.

Northwest Coast jewelry is unique, with different tribes having their own traditional styles and materials. Plentiful resources allowed specialists to develop in jewelry crafting. Many of the designs are derived from carved ceremonial masks, everyday objects such as boxes, spoons, and fish clubs, and totemic animals such as birds and fish. Traditional materials used are abalone, dentalium shells, fossilized ivory and bones, and cedar wood. European influence can be seen in the adoption of metals like copper and silver that were used as tools to augment woodworked pieces.

Artists whose jewelry appears in this exhibit are:

Victoria Adams, Tony Aguilar, Allen Aragon, Clarence and Eleanor Bailon, Ernest and Veronica Benally, Donna and George Bennett, Charlie Bird, Gail Bird, Terrence R. Campbell, Fritz Casuse, Arvin Caté, Joe Caté, Juan Caté, Lavonne Caté, Rosey Caté, Ric Charley, Jared Chavez, Mark Chee, Gene Tilton, H. M. Coonsis, Leo Coriz, Cippy Crazyhorse, Bernard Dallasvuyama, Francis Dick, Preston Duwyenie, Patty Fawn, Victor Gabriel, Nelson Garcia, Connie Tsosie Gaussoin, David Gaussoin, Wayne Nez Gaussoin, Shane Hendren, A. Henry, Yazzie Johnson, Darrell Jumbo, Roderick Kaskalla, A. Lane, Anthony Lovato, Duane Maktima, Naavaasya, Nakweesee, David Neel, Ed Archie Noisecat, Isaiah Ortiz, Angie Reano Owen, Myron Panteah, Rain Parrish, Norbert Peshlakai, Kevin and Valerie Pourier, Andrew Quam, Charlene Reano, Daniel Sunshine Reeves, Alta Rogers, Michael Rogers, Maria Samora, Cody Sanderson, Patrick Smith, Howard Sice, Ann Stern, Paul Szabo, Levi Tetpon, Lorenzo Tortalita, Edith Tsabetsaye, Brian Tso, Richard Tsosie, Dawn Wallace-Gadd, Denise Wallace, Raymond Yazzie, and W. Yellowhorse. The jewelry in this exhibit is either part of the David W. May Collection, or is on loan from private collectors.

This exhibit was curated by the students from the Anthropology 341 Museology class, Spring 2011, under the direction of Dr. Alana Cordy-Collins, Director of the David W. May American Indian Collection and Gallery. The students were Kaitlin Wright, Jennifer Pennell, Andrew Fernandez, Anthony Cortez, José Rosales-Chavez, Shari Khoshaba, and Juliana Larrosa.

The exhibit designer was  Juliana Gay, a 2002 graduate of USD with a BA in anthropology . She started as an intern at the San Diego Museum of Man in 1988, where she was eventually employed for more than 20 years. Juliana continued to work for the Archaeological Services Department as a contract faunal analyst. She is now Executive Director of the Bonita Museum and Cultural Center, and is also a free-lance artist and exhibit designer.

A Special Thank You: The opening receptions for the exhibits at the David W. May Gallery are always enhanced by the beautiful floral arrangements created by Rose Tyson. She retired after teaching Physical Anthropology here at the University of San Diego as an Adjunct Professor for ten years, and she is currently a Research Associate in the department. She has also been the photographer for several of the Gallery’s receptions.

For more information, please call (619) 260-4238 or visit www.sandiego.edu/cas/anthropology/may.