Navajo bracelets are beautiful symbols of prestige and affluence since the Navajo silversmiths learned to work silver in the mid 1870s. Early Navajo bracelets were made of copper and brass, heavy wire bent to fit around the wrist. Every Native American Jewelry collection should contain a diverse selection of Navajo Bracelets. Navajo Bracelets are made with Sterling Silver and often contain wonderful decorative designs and host Turquoise Stones, Coral, Gaspeite, Oyster Shell, Black Onyx and other decorative stones or items within the bracelet.
Of all Navajo Jewelry the bracelet is probably the best known. It's one of the pieces that are most frequently purchases by tourists as souvenirs. Also, Navajo Jewelry Wholesalers sell more bracelets than any other form of jewelry as well.
Over the last century turquoise has become more available to the Navajo Silversmiths. Turquoise is normally imported from min around Nevada and Colorado. As time has passed the availability of turquoise and other stone has become more plentiful allowing silversmiths to include them more and more into their work. Normally a silversmith will put more than one set of turquoise stone in the bracelet to keep it from looking bare and unfinished. If for some reason the silversmith can not afford to purchase large enough stones for the bracelet he will by smaller stones that are normally “leftover” from the mining process for much cheaper.
If you are looking for a Navajo Bracelet for your jewelry collection remember to pay attention to the bracelet’s size. The Navajo Bracelets are usually displayed by giving you the bracelet’s opening size as well as the size wrist it fits. So you will need to measure your wrist before you purchase your desired Navajo Bracelet. Also, take into consideration the width and thickness of the bracelet. Many of the Navajo Bracelets are thick and can become uncomfortably heavy if you're not use to wearing a bracelet of that size. Although, the thicker the bracelet, the more stones, gems, or corral the Navajo artist is able to inlay. It all depends on your style and what type of Navajo Bracelet you would prefer.
Navajo Bracelets are made for men as well. Typically they are much thicker than that of women's bracelets. However, they are most often very unique with a very masculine look and feel. It is said that a Navajo who doesn't own two or three bracelets is poor and those that are well off with have a dozen or more bracelets.
Shown below are three beautifully handmade Navajo Bracelets. As you can see the size, stones, and designs vary greatly from each bracelet and artist. Also, you can see how much thicker the men's bracelet is in the middle.
