Mexican Deco silver repousse "mask" Pin / Pendant with ancient bead
In the years I have been buying and selling vintage Mexican silver jewelry I have seen many "mask" pieces - this is, after all, one of the "pillars" in the genre's design index and I am also very partial to it and always on the look out for good examples. I have to also admit that seeing jewelry of a certain kind over and over again makes one a little more blasé and hence, more difficult to impress. Yet impressed I was with this astounding combination pin / pendant I am presenting here. Monumental in proportions, executed in the most sensitive, delicate repoussage I have seen, the warrior whose likeness is depicted here is awe-inspiring in his splendor and his determined expression. The silver-work's sculpturality creates the impression of a layered construction with the design's various planes accented by both oxidation and the glowing patina of time. The complexity of the headdress reveals new details every time one looks at the brooch while the ancient green bead that marks its very top reminds one of the long - at times glorious, at times painful - history the "mask" represents...
Size / Weight: 4 1/8" wide by 2 3/4" tall; 67.9 grams
Hallmarks / Date: not signed for maker nor hallmarked for metal quality yet tested and guaranteed to be silver of at least sterling grade; difficult to date with accuracy due to the lack of hallmarks yet based on workmanship, findings and theme, I would suggest pre-1948
Condition: though in excellent vintage condition exhibiting craftsmanship of the highest levels, having great patina and boasting a masterfully executed design, I am not sure if this piece started its life as a pin / pendant; I tend to believe that it might have been part of a two-piece belt buckle mostly because of indentations at the lower end of it, on either side of the "mask's" jaw and including the latter, that seem to have been soldered closed in the past; if this is indeed the case, the conversion must have been done a long time ago because the pin findings are of the old style encountered in early Mexican jewelry as is the fixed bail; whatever its history, this is a stupendous, unique (I dare say) example of 1920s-30s Mexican silversmithing
Inv# 15731