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A uniquely-designed and beautifully-crafted
Navajo Modernist-style Sterling silver and turquoise bracelet by Roger Skeet, Jr. for the C.G. Wallace Trading Post, Zuni, NM, c.1950’s-60’s
Roger Skeet, Jr. (B.1933) learned to make silver literally at his Father’s knee. His father, the renowned Navajo silversmith, Roger Skeet, Sr. was one of the famed Indian trader, C.G. Wallace’s primary in-house silversmiths along with such other accomplished luminaries as Etsitty Tsosie, Austin Wilson, William Goodluck and Ambrose Roanhorse. Skeet Sr. worked for Wallace at his landmark trading post at the Zuni Pueblo in far Western New Mexico for approximately 30 years from the late 1920’s until his death in 1959.
Roger Skeet, Jr. was born in 1933 and he began making silver alongside his Father in Wallace’s trading post as an eight year-old boy. The silverwork of both Skeets is quite similar, clean-lined and very traditionally-crafted but with a distinctly modern sensibility and always extremely fine detailing. Roger Skeet, Sr. never signed his pieces while Roger Skeet, Jr. always used a simple hallmark of his capital letter initials “RS” as on this bracelet.
The artistic imagination and technical skill displayed in this beautiful silver bracelet are quite remarkable; in fact,
we have only seen one other Navajo bracelet even remotely like it, which was a second somewhat similar assymetrical modernist-style silver and turquoise cuff bracelet which was also made by Roger Skeet Jr. This bracelet was creatively made in two completely different, yet beautifully related silver sections, the first being a band composed of five parallel triangularly-shaped silver wires and the second being an asymmetrically shaped solid silver band decorated with some elegant stamp and chisel work, also asymmetrically designed.
The visual impact and interplay between these two separate but related design bands lends the overall design a
startling dynamism and freshness. The bracelet is finally and perfectly completed by the addition of a striking bright
blue triangularly-shaped spiderweb turquoise stone set slightly off center in a beautifully-serrated silver bezel.
This lovely bright blue with a very slight touch of green colored gem-quality turquoise stone with deep black spiderweb matrix with light whiteish-tan inclusions appears to be from the famed Edgar #8 Mine in Carlin, Nevada.
The bracelet measures 1" in continuous width all the way around. The inner circumference end-to-end is 5 1/2" and the gap between the terminals is 1" for a total interior circumference of 6 1/2". The bracelet weighs an extremely comfortable and easy to wear 34 grams or 1 1/4 ounces. The bracelet is in excellent original condition and it is properly marked with Roger Skeet, Jr.’s “RS” capital initials hallmark on the back and is also marked “Sterling”.
This marvelous and striking Modernist bracelet is a real head-turner, most imaginatively-designed and very finely hand-crafted by one of the Southwest’s most accomplished Native American jewelry artists. It is extremely easy and satisfying to wear and it would look just wonderful in any situation on either a man or woman. A truly lovely and
unusually distinctive piece.
Price $1,100
At left, Charles Garrett (C.G.) Wallace, c. 1920's. At right, C.G. Wallace with some of his Native silversmiths at his trading post at Zuni Pueblo, c. 1920.
Left and right photo source and © Sotheby Parke Bernet
