Navajo Vintage Sterling Silver and Turquoise Pendant by Tom Willeto

Description Traditional handmade Native American Indian Jewelry from Indigenous Pueblos of the Southwest. Guaranteed authentic. Excellent vintage condition. Masterfully blending texture and tone, this vintage Diné (Navajo) sterling silver pendant by Tom Willeto centers on the rugged beauty of high-grade turquoise. The main feature is a substantial turquoise cabochon with a striking, matrix-heavy character, displaying deep forest greens and golden-brown matrix webbed across a rich blue base. This stone is set within a robust, hand-cast silver frame that showcases deeply oxidized recesses, flared fan accents, and a distinctive, geometric texture. The integrated bail mirrors this rugged, architectural aesthetic, ensuring the pendant drapes with a bold, masculine presence and an aged, soulful patina. Tom Willeto’s approach to silversmithing often involves these labor-intensive sandcasting or tufa-casting methods, where a design is carved into a soft volcanic stone (tufa) to create a single, textured piece of silver. This process results in a unique surface finish that mimics the natural, weathered landscape of the Navajo Nation. In Diné tradition, such powerful, casting pieces were designed to be heirlooms, combining the protective qualities of the “Sky Stone” with the enduring strength of hand-forged metal. For the collector, this pendant represents a masterful example of mid-to-late 20th-century Navajo artistry where every curve and texture was a deliberate reflection of the artist’s individual vision and cultural heritage.