Turquoise Silver Overlay Belt Buckle
Oxidized Sterling Silver and Kingman Spiderweb Turquoise Belt Buckle By Artist Alvin Monte. This square belt buckle features a sterling silver bezel set Kingman Spiderweb Turquoise cabochon in the center of silver overlay Ketoh design surrounded by oxidized sterling silver. This belt buckle measures 2 1/4 inches x 1 1/2 inches for a 1 1/4 belt.
Native American Artist: Alvin Monte
Navajo jewelry artist Alvin Monte works in both gold and silver, often making his own stamping tools to create one-of-a-kind designs.
Born in Socorro, Monte grew up in Canoncito, New Mexico. Both his parents were well-known silversmiths, but Monte didn’t pick up the trade until he moved away from
home. He is a self-taught silversmith. His inspirations often come from petroglyphs or pueblo designs although the execution of his designs is more symbolic than realistic. The result is a more modern verses traditional design that he likes to embellish with various stones including amethysts and garnets for a lustrous effect. Monte is now teaching his young son, who at age nine shows a talent for silver-smithing, thus elevating another generation of the Montes into the artist world.