Descripción
1970‘s Alice Quam Zuni 14k gold belt buckle carved pyrite turquoise cluster. Tested and guaranteed solid 14k gold. Steel bar to catch the belt. Weight and measurements in pictures, circa third quarter of the 20th century. Fits a 1.5" belt. This is a style that was later adopted by Alice Quam‘s daughter Alvina Quam, though not in gold that I know of. I have seen a few Alice Quam pieces in gold, but not that many even though when she was active gold was 1/7 to 1/130 of the current price. Yes you read that correctly, during much of the time she was active gold was .7% of it‘s current price. The average was probably 1/20 current price. Still gold items by her are extremely rare and were likely custom items as it was always more expensive than silver and not as popular with top Native American artists as it is today. Alice Quam was definitely a top Zuni artist
At the time of listing this melts for $8800 just counting the whole thing as gold. The stones are quality American turquoise which would of course be sold by the carat even if they were not carved by Alice Quam or possibly her daughter working under her. The stones are worth more than gold, the swivel on the back can‘t be that heavy. These days you hear a lot of people saying "NOT SCRAP" when referring to machine made gold jewelry, which is ridiculous to me as it‘s all scrap in my eyes. This is Historic Zuni jewelry that would improve the quality of any collection/wardrobe, it‘s not scrap, never will be. But really isn‘t priced at a ridiculous amount over scrap.
Alice Quam (1929-2003), Zuni Pueblo Jeweler
Zuni Pueblo artist Alice Quam was active 1930s - 2003. She was known for cluster jewelry. For over 50 years, collectors looking for the best cluster jewelry have beaten a path to the home of Alice Quam. Alice selects only the best natural turquoise and coral. Her stones are shaped to perfection. Alice‘s settings are clean and precise, often with twist wire and silver balls.
She was the daughter of Doris and Wayne Ondelacy; wife of Duane Quam; mother of Alvina Quam, Lorraine Waatsa, Shirley Quam, Wayne Quam and Elgin Quam.
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