Dead-pawn Navajo classic Sterling cuff with seven Sleeping Beauty mine turquoise stones. #0683

This older piece was really tarnished when it was brought out of the pawn vault.  The Drifter spent about an hour rejuvenating it while he watched that Waco, Texas couple on T.V. rejuvenate a "fixer upper" house.  Both the cuff and the house came out splendid.  This is another one of those classic row turquoise pieces (usually with Sleeping Beauty turquoise) that used to be so plentiful.  Now they are hard to find and pricey.  This cuff is one and 3/8's-inch across at its widest point; weighs three ounces, and will fit a man or a woman with a wrist size of seven inches.  As usual with cuff with a lot of stones, it can't be adjusted much—maybe a quarter-inch—without disturbing the integrity of the settings.  It has the Sterling stamp—and maybe something underneath that—but it was obviously made to wear, not to sell, and it's not unusual for pawn pieces made purely for the maker's own use to not have a hallmark.  Always remember, hallmarks are the white man's invention imposed on the Navajo long ago to help facilitate marketing of the jewelry.  The oldest, most expensive native pieces the Drifter has ever seen had no hallmark.