Navajo Silver Mother-in-law Bell Pin and Earring SET [SOLD]

The Navajo “mother-in-law” bell is worn by the mother-in-law to warn her son-in-law of her impending arrival. The Navajo believe that the two must not lay eyes on each other.

With respect to the Navajo tradition, donning bells as a mother-in-law may be done with consideration and playfulness, and these earrings and pin are in excellent condition.  One would not need to be a mother-in-law to enjoy the set, as their petite nature and fine Navajo craftsmanship make them both elegant and a source of merrymaking. Each bell is functional, and both the earrings and the arrow of the pin are stamped, in Fred Harvey fashion. Perfect as a gift to oneself or another, this set is original and lively. 

“Bells. The Navajo also made tiny bells. Grey Moustache says the Mexicans taught the Navajos to make them many years ago, when they first learned to work silver; (Adair:7). They were made much as a button, Grey Moustache remembers, with a loop of metal soldered inside the top of the bell to hold tiny silver or copper clapper. Both sexes wore them at dances, and women sometimes fastened them to their sashes to warn their sons-in-law of their approach because no Navajo was supposed to look on his wife’s mother; hence the occasional term ‘mother-in-law bell (Bedinger).’”

Condition: there is a lovely patina to both the pin and earrings, and the set is in excellent condition. 

Provenance: this Navajo Silver Mother-in-law Bell Pin and Earring SET is from a private collection

Resources:

- Indian Silver: Navajo and Pueblo Jewelers by Margery Bedinger. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. 1973.

- The Navajo and Pueblo Silversmiths by John Adair