Description
6.75" Dan Oliver Navajo sterling silver spiderweb turquoise heavy link bracelet. Tested and guaranteed solid sterling silver with weight and measurements in pictures. Great condition with age appropriate wear, circa last quarter of the 20th century.
Dan Oliver, resident Navajo silversmith at Shades of the West for over 40 years, created original American Indian jewelry exclusively for Shades of the West and Bischoff’s at the Park.
His father, Lloyd Oliver, was Navajo and one of the original 29 code talkers in World War II and his mother, Pauline Peters, was Pima (Gila River Indian Community). As a young boy, Dan would watch his father doing silver work, so he learned the art of making jewelry from him. Lloyd Oliver was a silversmith at Shades of the West 40 years ago. He told them his son also was a silversmith so Dan became the resident silversmith at Shades of the West until his death.
Dan felt a great connection with his father when working with silver. He used his father's tools and the knowledge his father handed down to him and always hoped his father would be proud of him.
Dan loved silversmithing for many reasons: he loved making things with his hands, he loved taking a sheet of silver and creating something beautiful, and he loved to try different techniques of working with the metal and the various hues and shades of turquoise.
Dan made both traditional and contemporary silver work. He used pottery and rug designs in his traditional work. He said he got his other inspiration from nature: trees, animals, birds, mountains. Dan said: "Silversmithing is all I've ever done my whole life. I would like people to remember me for my silver work."
