Fred Harvey Style Turquoise Navajo Ring with Square Stone [SOLD]

This Fred Harvey style ring has an amazing robin’s egg blue stone which was cut in a square shape and set in a straight-edge bezel and placed on a frame of small silver drops. The entire shank was meticulously stamped with tiny lacey crescents and arrows by a silversmith from the Navajo Nation.   

Turquoise was a ceremonial gem and a medium of exchange for Native American tribes in the American Southwest. They also used it in their jewelry and amulets. Turquoise is found in only a few places on earth: dry and barren regions where acidic, copper-rich groundwater seeps downward and reacts with minerals that contain phosphorus and aluminum. Turquoise is one of the world's most ancient gems. Archaeological excavations revealed that the rulers of ancient Egypt adorned themselves with turquoise jewelry, and Chinese artisans were carving it more than 3,000 years ago. Turquoise is also the national gem of Tibet, and has long been considered a stone that guarantees health, good fortune, and protection from evil. Turquoise is among the world's oldest jewelry. It was referred to by the Egyptians as Mefkat, which also means joy and delight.

We are posting other Diné rings with square or rectangular cut turquoise below. Sizes range from 4 to 8. Check them out as well.

Condition: this Fred Harvey Style Turquoise Navajo Ring with Square Stone is in excellent condition. The stone is intact.

Provenance: the ring is out of a large Colorado Southwest Indian Jewelry collection.

Recommended Reading: Inventing the Southwest: The Fred Harvey Company and Native American Art by Diana Pardue and Kathleen Howard

Relative Links: Southwest Indian Jewelry, Navajo Nation, Fred Harvey