Dan Jackson Navajo Sterling Silver Cuff with Square Floating Turquoise [SOLD]

This bracelet is special for many reasons.  Created by Diné of the Navajo Nation artist Dan Jackson, it is both similar to and different from his larger body of work.  Dan takes specific care to create pieces of jewelry that are solid and long lasting.  He is also known for using Navajo rug patterns on many of his pieces.  Simpler than those with textile prints, this bracelet is sleek and features a splendid piece of turquoise.  

A one-and-a half-inch thick cuff was first formed.  Five incised lines travel from the bottom of the wrist up to the rectangle channel on the face.  These lines expand just slightly to be wider set at the turquoise than from where they began.  Complementing these mostly parallel lines, five more incisions in the cuff were made on the top edges of the silver, reaching outward like rays of the sun.  This creates the appearance of rays of light reaching out in every direction from the central gemstone.  

The turquoise itself is fascinating and divine.  It is quite possible that this turquoise is from the number eight mine in Nevada.  Number eight turquoise is known for its bright blues and can have a black matrix, exactly as this one has formed.  It is stunning and a very high-quality gemstone. Jackson made an intriguing housing for the stone and left a small but obvious space between the silver of the cuff and the turquoise making it appear as if it floats magically inside the bracelet. 

Dan Jackson is a Navajo jeweler who was born in 1944. He learned silversmithing from his father and started making jewelry in 1964. Jackson’s mother was a weaver, and he bases many of his designs on Navajo textiles. He prides himself on making solid pieces of jewelry that will last and often includes a small defect in the patterns of his work to distinguish it as hand-made and his own. 

HOW TO MEASURE YOUR WRIST FOR BRACELET SIZE

Condition: This Dan Jackson bracelet is in very good condition

Provenance: This Dan Jackson Navajo Sterling Silver Cuff with Square Floating Turquoise  is from a private Michigan collection and was originally purchased at the Squash Blossom Gallery in Aspen, Colorado. 

Recommended Reading: Navajo Jewelry: A Legacy of Silver and Stone by Lois Jacka

Relative Links: Diné of the Navajo Nation, Southwest Indian Jewelry, Dan Jackson