Navajo Sterling Silver & 14K Gold French Hook Native American Earrings

Silver and Gold, these earrings are true treasures. This pair comes from Rod, an old friend of Richard's from Albuquerque, New Mexico. These earrings were made from hand cut sheets of shimmering Sterling Silver with hand stamped fine line designs. Each earring holds a hand cut, hand stamped band of 14K Gold at the center. These earrings will match perfectly with any other Silver and Gold jewelry that's already in your collection. They each hang from their French hooks at a length of 1-1/2". Signed by the Navajo artist. Stamped Sterling and 14K. Hand stamped designs on the Gold may slightly vary.

Ancient tradition holds that certain metals have medicinal qualities. Silver is intuition, beauty and spiritual healing. Valued since the dawn of time as a store of wealth, gold continues to be the most solid medium of exchange in the world. The western states have seen many gold rushes...California in 1849, Colorado in 1859, the Yukon in 1897, and the latest gold rush of the 1980s and 1990s with its huge surface mines in the old gold mining camps of the western U.S. The United States is once again one of the largest producers of gold in the world, producing real wealth from the riches of nature.

The Navajo were the first of the southwestern Indians to produce jewelry that required metal working. Around 1850 a Navajo Medicine Man, Atsidi Sani, convinced a Mexican blacksmith to teach him the art of working with metal. When the Navajo returned to their homeland in 1868 after their imprisonment at Fort Sumner, New Mexico, traders arrived in the area bringing silver coins with them. It was with these coins that the Navajo began to make silver jewelry. In 1884, two Mexican silversmiths were employed by the Hubbell Trading Post to teach Navajos how to solder and work with silver.

We understand the true value and nature of hand crafted Indian art. And, we recognize that it is important to know that the artist is truly a member of a Native American tribe. So, to ensure you that this is the real deal, a Certificate of Authenticity has been included with this item.

CERTIFIED AUTHENTIC