VTG Navajo Belt‎ Buckle Turquoise Coral Inlay Guild Artist C Sterling 3" x 2"

Navajo Native American custom belt buckle made of heavily stamped and hammered sterling silver metal. The artist marked this vintage 1960's-1970's buckle with the letter C. During our research we noticed similar motifs and design elements seen on other period buckles indicating that this was part of a guild or shop that employed a wide range of notable artists. This specimen has what appears to be a red and blue center sunburst with rays along with blue water regenerating the earth and creation. Curved markings can be interpreted as animal hoof prints or tracks and or clouds in the sky above a rising set of mountain ranges that morph into a bird in flight. There appears to be multiple panels that tell a story with rich Four Corners Indian symbolism some of which relates to pictographs and petroglyphs found across the region ranging from Anasazi Freemont into post contact periods. This along with all artists whom made these buckles were awesome and it is wonderful to be able to honor and share their work with others. The craftsmanship since it is handmade shows varying thickness hammer marks, brazing and extensive tooling. Many hours were invested in creating these and it appears that each buckle although drawing from similar pool of design elements is unique and original.