Sublime Sterling Ingot Cuff 3 Pyramid Architectural Forms

Timeless drama !

To work ingot into a cuff of this weight requires hammer "stretching" and multiple passes through a hand-cranked rolling mill.  Each time the silver is worked to a point of hardness, when it ceases to be malleable, it has to be annealed.  Moving silver into the exacting forms Mr. Begay coaxed out of ingot material, required over 200 full and area specific "heats", taking time, patience and finesse.

Three low profile pyramidal forms were raised and shaped using the repousse technique.  Cruciform definition was achieved with a steel chisel edge, from the inside back, as the repousse progressed.  Each form was made without a die guide and subsequently reinforced with smelted silver where the chisel was used.

(1913-1977) Silversmith, jeweler and teacher, Kenneth Begay has been called the “father of modern Navajo jewelry”. In the early years his bold, modern designs were considered so radical that he was excluded from a 1949 exhibition of Native American art. Today his clean, elegant creations are seen in numerous museum collections including The Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art and the American Museum of Natural History, as well as the Heard Museum.

Begay spent his most productive years (1948-1962) as a smith at the White Hogan in Scottsdale.  His son, Harvey Begay became another highly regarded jeweler and silversmith.