Hopi Pueblo Overlay Belt Buckle with Water Design [SOLD]

Before the1930s, Hopi Pueblo jewelry was similar in style to jewelry made by Navajo and Zuni Pueblo artisans.  It wasn’t until after World War II that a *G.I. training program for Hopi veterans changed that. The program offered classes in jewelry making. Paul Saufkie was the technical director and Fred Kabotie was the director of design. With the intention of creating a unique Hopi jewelry style, the overlay technique was developed and refined. This technique requires cutting a design out of one piece of silver and overlaying it on another oxidized piece. Today the Hopi overlay style is considered to be the traditional Hopi style of jewelry.

Mark Tawahongva was born at the Hopi Third Mesa village of Hotevilla. He learned to make traditional style Hopi jewelry at the Hopi Silvercraft Cooperative Guild. In addition to being a jeweler, Tawahongva is a musician and he plays the bass fiddle in a band.

This belt buckle features a running water motif. Expert skill and attention to detail are required to cut the curving lines of this pattern. The buckle design has three lines of waves flowing over a series of small arches. They are set on a textured and oxidized background. The buckle is signed with the artist’s hallmark, a small set of rabbit ears and the initials MT.

Condition: The Hopi Pueblo Overlay Belt Buckle with Water Design is in excellent condition with minor scratches from use

Provenance: From the estate of a former client from Oregon who amassed a collection of 40 Native-made belt buckles. The previous owner purchased the buckle in 1993.

Recommended Reading: The Beauty of Hopi Jewelry by Theda Bassman

*G.I. is an acronym used to describe the soldiers of the United States Army and airmen of the United States Army Air Forces and also for general items of their equipment.  The term G.I. has been used as an initialism of "Government Issue" or "General Issue", but it originally referred to "galvanized iron", as used by the logistics services of the United States Armed Forces. - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia