Chimney Butte Sandcast Cuff, Number 8 Turquoise, Navajo Sterling Silver, 150g
A sandcast Navajo cuff by Chimney Butte, three heavy bands of open silver around one large Number 8 turquoise.
Specifications
- Metal: Sterling silver
- Artist: Chimney Butte (Navajo)
- Made: 2026
- Stone: Number 8 turquoise, cabochon
- Inner circumference: 5.5 inches (14.0 cm)
- Overall length: 6.5 inches (16.5 cm)
- Width at the widest point: 2.7 inches (6.9 cm)
- Weight: 150 grams
Hallmarks
- Chimney Butte, script maker's stamp
- Sterling
Both marks are struck on the back. The Chimney Butte stamp is the maker's mark; Sterling is the silver standard.
About the Piece
The body is sandcast, which is the old way of doing it. Molten silver is poured into a carved sand mould, so the surface comes out with a slightly grainy, softened texture that no amount of machine work reproduces. The three bands split and curve around the stone and rejoin at the terminals, with applied silver drops at each junction.
The stone is a big one, set high in a plain bezel with nothing competing against it. Sky blue running into pale green, with heavy gold and rust brown matrix webbing right through it. The bezel is deliberately simple because the stone and the cast body are already doing plenty.
At 150 grams this is a serious cuff. It has the weight that makes people ask about it.
The Number 8 mine in Nevada closed in the 1960s, so the stone only comes from old stock now. It is prized for heavy golden brown to black spiderweb matrix.
Chimney Butte is a Navajo (Dine) silversmith working out of New Mexico in a deliberately old style idiom: heavy gauge sterling, deep hand stamping, repousse, sandcast work, and good named mine turquoise. The mark is one of the most recognisable in contemporary Southwestern silver, which is part of why the work holds its value. Every piece is stamped Chimney Butte and Sterling on the back.
Styling
Substantial enough to wear on its own. The opening adjusts a little by gentle pressure with both hands on the terminals, though sterling this heavy should be moved as little as possible.
Condition
Excellent. Newly made and unworn, with the deep oxidised finish the maker applies to the stamped recesses.
Please review all photographs carefully, as they form an important part of the description.
This listing is for one cuff only.
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