Bracelet of unknown origin…

Discussion in 'Jewelry' started by TanyaG, Dec 8, 2021.

  1. TanyaG

    TanyaG Active Member

    This was my mom’s, but I have no idea where she got it. I know swastikas were used by lots of different cultures, so I’m having trouble narrowing down who might have made it. The arrow is pretty common as well, but the two together might mean something? I’m leaning toward Navajo (my mom grew up in the southwest US) or maybe Indian/Bengali/somewhere-in-Asia… I just don’t know and I’m so curious!

    (Also, I don’t know what kind of metal it is - any guesses? It’s not magnetic, has no odor, not very malleable)
    7C3CBAE8-8670-4AF6-9A97-E85C5805E923.jpeg 5A784E63-0A2F-49EA-855F-C03CE351D704.jpeg DB9D06F8-5D1F-404A-9713-882DEDE4C55D.jpeg
     
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  2. Hollyblue

    Hollyblue Well-Known Member

    What does the inside of the bracelet look like? Photo?
     
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  3. Aznathalie

    Aznathalie Well-Known Member

  4. TanyaG

    TanyaG Active Member

    A few days ago, I polished the back but left one end unpolished to try to compare the metal. The last photo is the untouched end - it’s a bit hazy and pitted, maybe an aluminum alloy? But I can’t find any signatures. I guess that would be too easy… 182D06BA-40E8-4C7F-9430-82759A9D7F7F.jpeg 13B057F6-B772-4EC7-8CA4-241B3782A489.jpeg C3738B62-49D9-42D1-A95F-9B7276ECBAB2.jpeg
     
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  5. TanyaG

    TanyaG Active Member

    Interesting! I’ve done a lot of reading about the symbol, but I’ve never seen it spelled like that. Thank you!
     
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  6. Hollyblue

    Hollyblue Well-Known Member

    Mystery that will probably never be solved.I have never seen anything NA or Asian made that way,someone in their garage playing with acid.
     
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  7. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    It looks like it could be 'German silver' or 'nickel silver', neither of which have any silver content, but are an alloy of nickel, copper and zinc.
     
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  8. Laurel

    Laurel New Member

    I've seen swastikas in India so that is a possibility. I forget what they mean, but they were on some temples. That is a sauswastika--left facing--which is what was on the temples. It looks to be brass.
     
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  9. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    Indian art seldom depicts arrows, and if it does, the arrows are long and slender.
    I think this is the type of work that is done in Western countries. Given the decorations, I would say Native American made or inspired. It can't be sold as NA.

    Example of an Indian arrow, detail of a statue of Arjuna:

    upload_2021-12-11_19-29-14.jpeg
     
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  10. Dory64

    Dory64 Well-Known Member

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  11. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    Swastikas are all over Asia.
    But they are also used in other parts of the world, so you have to look at the entire item, the material, shape, every part of the decoration, and how it was made.
    Taking every one of those aspects into account, nothing about this cuff indicates a Balinese or other Asian origin, and the arrow bears no resemblance to Balinese arrows.

    My Balinese Art Deco archer, with arrow, long and thin:

    upload_2021-12-12_13-17-37.jpeg
     
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