RARE TUFA BRACELET BY AWARD WINNING SILVERSMITH RIC CHARLIE! This will be a great investment piece. This bracelet is either new old stock or was never worn, which wouldn’t surprise me because of its value and. This contemporary bracelet encapsulates the style Ric is known for with its unique cornered shape, the Kachina as the subject, and the use of precious stones. He often uses diamonds in his bracelets. I don’t believe he would ever use anything other than a high quality, natural stone. But I do not know what the stone is. I’m guessing it’s either a blue topaz or an aquamarine. I have a six inch wrist. So, even though this technically measures just above six inches, it’s very loose on me due to the design. If I slip it up my arm and mark the comfortable spot, it measures out 7 and will definitely fit more comfortably on a flatter wrist versus a round one. This bracelet is by award-winning Navajo silversmith Ric Charlie, an accomplished self-taught artist who has won international acclaim for his tufa cast jewelry. He has received numerous awards at the Heard Museum and at Santa Fe Indian Market, including Best of Show, Best of Class and Excellence in Tufa Stone Casting. You can see samples of his work on his site and in a few very high-end galleries. From the Wheelwright Museum. Ric Charlie is noted for his fine tufa cast work. His jewelry often has added colorful patinas in shades of gold, rust, red, purple, blue and green, achieved by adding liver of sulphur to the silver. He uses Navajo landscape scenes, Yei Bi’Ci’ spiritual figures and sand painting designs in his pieces. The fine lines in his jewelry are accomplished by incising the tufa stone with the dental tools Ric has used for over 20 years. He uses a wide range of techniques including mosaic, channel inlay and set natural stones. Ric is also a painter and sculptor. Born in Tuba City, Arizona in 1959, Ric is of Tsi’naa’jinii’ (Black-Streaked-Wood-People) and Ta’baahi’ (Edgewater) Clans. Growing up under humble circumstances with his grandparents in the sun streaked red cliffs, Ric learned the traditional ways while watching the old ones slowly adjust to new technology and world ideas. He began experimenting with jewelry making and learned the basic techniques while in high school. He attended Arizona State University in Tempe and the University of Arizona in Tucson with sports scholarships. There, he formally studied jewelry making and design. But in the area of tufa casting, Ric is a largely self taught artist. The technique he uses was not part of his college studio art curriculum. He apprenticed himself to other jewelers whose work he admired and set himself a goal to make the lines fine and clean. Ric has been a practicing jeweler since the early 1970s. Today, in addition to pursuing and perfecting his own career, Ric teaches and advises young Native artists from around the world on his distinctive tufa stone casting methods. During his lifetime, Ric has had a strong sense of being a part of Monument Valley and has felt like it was him home. So a lot of his work has the Monument Valley scenery. “Every time I feel down, I always think about my place in life, and I feel that I have something to give into this world. “. The cuff measures 7/8 wide. Cuff Size: 4 3/4. Wrist Size: 5 3/4″ (I have a 6″ wrist and it fits). If you are a collector of Native American Pottery, Jewelry, Kachinas, baskets, and hard-to-find items, please put us in your favorites so you can be notified of our new items as we list them. Please check out our other auctions both under. Please consider the pictures, therefore, 90% of the description. We try to take photos that are as true to the actual color as we can possibly get. But, keep in mind, every monitor shows colors differently. We attempt to depict any defects in the description. However, the pictures are to be considered the majority of the description. I identify stones to the best of my ability. Turquoise may or may not be treated. If I know it is block turquoise, coral, or opal, I will state so. I can only base it on why my Dad taught me when he repaired jewelry. I test stones using the hot needle test and if silver isn’t marked sterling or 925, I will test using magnet and ice. We do our best to document our items accurately. The only reason we will accept a return is if we misrepresent an item by accident. This is our #1 priority. If there is a hallmark, I will do my best to identify the artist. This item is in the category “Collectibles\Cultures & Ethnicities\Native American: US\1935-Now\Jewelry”. The seller is “lcbergh” and is located in this country: US. This item can be shipped to United States.
- Origin: Native American
- Jewelry Type: Cuff Bracelet
- Metal Purity: 925
- Featured Refinements: Navajo Tufa Bracelet
- Metal: Sterling Silver
- Artisan: RIC CHARLIE
- Tribal Affiliation: Navajo
- Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
- Handmade: Yes
- Culture: Native American: US
- Modified Item: No
- Main Stone: Aquamarine or Blue Topaz
