GERMAN SILVER JEWELRY OF THE SOUTHERN PLAINS INDIANS
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which led to increased production
and provided greater opportunities
for innovation and exploitation of its
aesthetic possibilities.
GERMAN SILVER JEWELRY That artists of the Southern
Plains would embrace the production
of jewelry made from German silver
OF THE SOUTHERN
not only shows their interest in
making objects used for personal
adornment, but also indicates the
medium was uniquely suited to the
PLAINS INDIANS nomadic life of the Southern Plains
tribes, as the equipment required
to produce these objects could be
easily transported.5 By the 1890s, the
How a nickel alloy became the metal of choice on the Great Plains hardships of life on reservations and
the inability to secure raw materials
led to a significant decrease in the
By Denise Neil-Binion production of German silver on the
Southern Plains.6
An investigation of
19th-century photographs reveals
O
NE OF THE MOST which can be produced by incising, that German silver was used in a
intriguing media that stamping, or piercing. Jewelers often wide array of jewelry including
Southern Plains artists make stamps by hand from tempered earrings, finger rings, hair plates, arm
use to produce personal steel tools such as files, chisels, and bands, bracelets, necklaces, chokers,
accessories is German silver—a punches. These stamps are often bandoliers, brooches, gorgets,
material with a misleading name, passed down through generations. crosses, tie slides, breastplates, and
since this nonferrous alloy contains Each artist must use the tools of horse gear. In an 1864 photograph of
no silver. Instead, it is made from the trade, which can include cold Little Robe, the Southern Cheyenne
copper, nickel, and zinc. Harder chisels, hammers, a jeweler’s saw, Little Robe, Skiomah (Southern Cheyenne, ca, 1828–1886), in New York, 1871. He was wearing a
chief wore a large cross of German
than sterling silver yet malleable metal shears, files, and a dapping German silver pectorial with a cross and three crescents. Photograph in the collection of the Library silver with crescents dangling from
and able to take a high polish, block, all used to shape the piece
of Congress. each side of the horizontal cross bar
German silver jewelry is collected before embellishment can begin. and a larger crescent attached to
Britain in 1830.2 German silver was non-Native craftsmen who produced
and worn by Native Americans, but The final step in producing German the bottom of the elaborate pendant
soon introduced in the United States, pieces according to the wishes of the
Native American metalsmiths also silver jewelry is polishing the piece that spanned across his chest. These
and the metal made its way into Southern Plains tribesmen.4
produce contemporary jewelry for an to a high sheen. Although works in crescent embellishments are also
the wide array of goods traded with By the mid-19th century, artists
appreciative, non-Native audience.1 purely German silver usually stand found on headstalls and cloud-
Native Americans as early as 1832.3 of the Southern Plains tribes began shaped pectorals from the same
Artists of the Southern Plains on their own, fine examples include
In her introduction to the exhibition to create their own jewelry using period.7 Owning and wearing such a
tribes that work with German stone settings.
catalogue, Contemporary Southern German silver. At that time, its large piece of German silver jewelry
silver often refer to themselves as German silver was invented as a
Plains Indian Metalwork, Rosemary limited availability made it a coveted was, no doubt, a symbol of status.
metalsmiths rather than silversmiths. more affordable alternative to silver.
Ellison notes that the earliest material, but between 1865 and 1880, In addition to his cross, Little Robe
Today’s artists continue to produce The historical record of the alloy is
somewhat sketchy about the exact examples of German silver jewelry German silver became more readily wore a ring on the little finger of his
German silver jewelry using many
methods dating back to the 19th dates and origins, but the alloy was that emerged on the Southern available, reducing its status as a left hand. In another photographic
century. The metalsmith is both a known as paktong in China and was Plains were not produced by Native rare commodity. However, greater example from 1872, Big Mouth
skilled craftsman and an artist. After refined in Saxony, Germany, in the American artists but rather made availability led to more Indigenous (Southern Arapaho) is seated in
determining the type of piece to late 17th century. According to C. by Mexican silversmiths or itinerant artists working with this material, profile, revealing a long row of hair
be made, the artist must select the Stephan Demeter, metalsmiths from 3. C. Stephan Demeter, “Nickel Silver: An Aspect of Material Culture Change in the Upper Great Lakes Indian Trade,” Historical Archaeology 14, no. 1 (January 1980):
Artist Unknown, Tack Set with Native
proper metal gauge for producing American Church Imagery, German silver,
Hildburghausen, Germany, recreated 109.
4. Ellison, Contemporary Southern Plains Indian Metalwork, 14.
the piece and choose the designs, brass, collection of J. W. Wiggins. the alloy and it was first used in
5. Ibid, 19.
1. Rosemary Ellison, Contemporary Southern Plains Indian Metalwork (Anadarko, OK: Oklahoma Indian Arts and Crafts Cooperative, 1976), 33. 6. Daniel C. Swan, Peyote Religious Art: Symbols of Faith and Belief (Jackson, MS: University of Mississippi Press, 1999), 63.
2. C. Stephan Demeter, “Nickel Silver: An Aspect of Material Culture Change in the Upper Great Lakes Indian Trade,” Historical Archaeology 14, no. 1 (January 1980): 109. 7. Benson L. Lanford, “Historic Plains Indian Jewelry,” American Indian Art Magazine 18, no. 4 (Autumn 1993): 68.
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the need to identify their work for of an overall composition, appearing
protection against imitation and as an applied design stamped or
exploitation. Although marks can be soldered on a surface of a more
found on jewelry pieces as early as complex piece such as a gorget. By
the 1930s, it was not until the 1960s the 1920s, wearing jewelry items with
that the Pawnee metalsmith Julius religious iconography had become a
Caesar (1910–1982) began to mark widespread practice among members
his jewelry with “Made by Caesar” of the Native American Church.
on the reverse of some of his more On the Southern Plains, Native
elaborate pieces.10 American metalsmiths, particularly
The beginning of the 20th members of the Kiowa, Comanche,
century marks the development Cheyenne, Pawnee, and Kickapoo
of specialized iconography in the tribes of Oklahoma, contributed
decoration of German silver jewelry significantly to the development
across the Southern Plains—most of peyote-inspired pieces. As Swan
notably in designs that reflect has written, “The period of greatest
the ceremonies and symbolism innovation, with respect to the design
of the Native American Church. and composition, was between the
According to Dan Swan, professor 1920s and 1940s. … Developments in
and curator, “Metal jewelry has long technique and execution included the
been recognized as one of the most use of hinged tail and wing feathers
innovative and unique art forms on birds, fine chain for fringe on fans
associated with the Native American and rattles, an expanded use of set
Church. Peyote jewelry is a clear stones, and refinement of stamping
example of an artistic tradition and engraving.”13
that originated in connection German silver was popular
with American Indian religious among Plains tribes and particularly
movements of the reservation era.” members of the Native American
Swan also asserts that, “the Peyote Church. Outside of the church,
Religion in Oklahoma provided a the iconographic symbols of
source of inspiration and motivation peyotism, particularly the waterbird,
for a resurgence in production of became increasingly used to
German silver jewelry.”11 Symbols decorate powwow regalia. These
associated with the Native American jewelry pieces included armbands,
Church included the peyote button, neckerchief slides, roach spreaders,
half-moon altar, and the morning women’s single- and double-trailer
Big Mouth (Southern Arapaho), 1872, with a hair drop of German silver hair plates.
star, as well as tipis, fans, and rattles, earrings, blouse pins, brooches,
plates. The large, domed disks extend silver jewelry is nearly impossible, but the most prevalent symbol and conchos used to decorate belts, Marlene Mameah Riding In (Pawnee), Cross Pendant with Waterbird, German silver, brass, collection
from the roach worn at the back of because artists did not sign or used to embellish jewelry was the women’s boots, and hair ornaments. of J. W. Wiggins.
his head. Such elaborate hair plates stamp their pieces with a maker’s waterbird or spirit bird. German silver accessories were
The waterbird, according to also found a market for their jewelry in Southwestern Oklahoma. This
were in fashion for a relatively short mark prior to the mid-20th century. highly decorative additions to a
the Pawnee-Meskwaki metalsmith dancer’s clothing and light in weight. among a non-Native audience, which Indian-owned and operated arts and
period between the 1860 and the However, these early works still emerged in the mid-20th century crafts enterprise was housed at the
Bruce Caesar, is not a holy being but Furthermore, the shimmering
1870s, a time frame when German feature distinguishing characteristics. and fostered experimentation of museum.14 Cooperative members
acts as an intercessor that protects reflections of the highly polished
silver jewelry production had 9
The earliest smiths relied upon prayers and keeps them true.12 Often German silver metalwork that such as Kiowa metalsmith George
pieces can enhance the overall effect
reached a high mark among Plains the individuality of their stamps to depicted with the neck and wings continues to evolve today. In 1966, “Dutch” Silverhorn (1911–1969)
of a dancer in motion.
artists.8 identify or personalize their pieces. extended as if in flight, the waterbird The history of German silver the Southern Plains Indian Museum embraced this opportunity to
Distinguishing the makers Eventually, Native American artists may constitute the entire piece as a jewelry among the Plains Indians and the Oklahoma Indian Arts expand the market for German
of the earliest-produced German working in metal began to recognize stickpin or earrings, or it may be part reveals its associations with the and Crafts Cooperative worked silver jewelry for modern fashion.
8. Benson L. Lanford, “Historic Plains Indian Jewelry,” American Indian Art Magazine 18, no. 4 (Autumn 1993): 68.
Native American Church and together to promote the production Silverhorn developed a new style
9. Lanford, “Historic Plains Indian Jewelry,” 66. powwow culture, but metalsmiths and sale of German silver jewelry of finger ring based on older
10. Ellison, Contemporary Southern Plains Indian Metalwork, 25.
11. Swan, Peyote Religious Art, 62–63. 13. Swan, Peyote Religious Art, 64.
12. National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, “Bruce Caesar,” YouTube (January 23, 2015), accessed December 11, 2016, web. 14. Ibid., 40.
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with the art form at age seven, and she had wanted to study jewelry making while attending
within two years, he was exhibiting Bacone College in Muskogee, Oklahoma, but female
his own work at art shows.16 In a students were not allowed to take these classes, so she
video interview, the artist recalls settled for courses in painting. However, her interest in
watching his father work in his
jewelry making remained, so she picked up the basics
studio. He speaks of his deep
of metalwork while employed at a store in Skiatook,
admiration for his parents and his
desire to please them, and, perhaps Oklahoma, that sold Indian jewelry and other items.
most importantly, he elaborates on After teaching herself jewelry making, her artistic career
how the artistic objects produced by “just took off from there.”20 In 2007, Riding In Mameah
his father and grandfather inspired was selected as the “Honored One” at the Red Earth
him to emulate them and to become Native American Cultural Festival held in Oklahoma
a jewelry artist himself.17 In addition City, Oklahoma. The award is presented to an American
to honoring the work of his father Indian master in the visual arts for their influence,
and other metalsmiths that came support, and achievements in the genre, and in the
before him, Bruce says he is always
American Indian art community.21
learning as an artist: “The key is to
An excellent example of Riding In Mameah’s
never stop learning. Look and seek
out new things.”18 work is her bolo tie slide that features a waterbird with
Developing metalworking its neck and wings extended and a cross embellishing
skills takes time, and Bruce notes the center of the bird’s back. At the bottom of the tie’s
that despite his enthusiasm at an braided, leather strings, the artist has included crescents Marlene Mameah Riding In (Pawnee), Pawnee Star, pectorial of German
early age, becoming a metalsmith and additional crosses, more imagery of the Native silver, brass, collection of J. W. Wiggins.
was a prolonged process of learning. American Church. Other jewelry pieces by Riding
His first tasks in his father’s studio In Mameah include scarf brooches with pierced and
Charles Pee Ba Shee (tribal affiliation unknown), Peyote Altar Pin, stamped German silver,
collection of J. W. Wiggins.
included finishing and filing pieces. stamped designs, and German silver pendants attached
The artist enjoyed these processes
to black onyx beaded necklaces. The necklaces represent
rings he studied in 19th-century Oklahoma. Honing his craft in the because he was allowed to work
the continued development of German silver jewelry to
photographs. Other innovators 1930s, he learned metalwork from with the jewelry that his father was
in modern jewelry manufacture fellow Pawnee jeweler Hiram Jake making. Bruce’s technical skills include the addition of other materials in the production
SPACE
include Julius Caesar, and Murray (1880–1947), who specialized in and artistic prowess are clearly of contemporary works of art on the Southern Plains.
Tonepahote (Kiowa, 1911–1968). pieces that featured designs of the demonstrated in the work that he From the 19th to the 21st century, jewelry made of
German silver jewelry from this Native American Church. Caesar’s creates. His many accolades and German silver has been a mainstay of artistic production
period included men’s belt buckles, wife was a member of the Meskwaki awards include receiving a 1998 on the Southern Plains. The history of the medium and
FILLER
hatbands, tie clasps, pendants, tribe from Iowa. Her father was a National Heritage Fellowship from the artists that came before are widely respected by the
and tie slides as well as rings and silversmith who influenced Julius’s the National Endowment of the artists that continue to practice this art today. It is an art
earrings. Earrings and bracelets, work as an artist and inspired his Arts. The Caesar family continues form that has been passed down through generations
PHOTO-
popular among 19th-century Plains blending of Plains and Woodland to produce coveted works of jewelry
of artists as seen in the Caesar family. Today, German
women, remained popular among aesthetics. More than any other in German silver. Bruce’s son Adam
silversmithing is no longer restricted to male artists,
both Native and non-Native women single artist, Julius Caesar has been represents the fifth generation of
during the second half of the 20th credited for preserving metalwork metalsmiths in the Caesar family.19 thanks to trailblazing artists such as Marlene Riding
GRAPH
century. on the Southern Plains.15 Julius was Creating jewelry from German In Mameah. The jewelry produced by artists across
Although many artists from the patriarch of this family of artists, silver has generally been the the centuries has been used by members of the Native
multiple Plains tribes have practiced and he passed his metallurgical skills provenance of men, but Pawnee American Church, as part of powwow regalia, in tribal
the art of making German silver on to his sons, Bruce and Harry, who artist Marlene Riding In Mameah princess regalie, and is produced for art collectors, but
jewelry, the Caesar family is among took an interest in making jewelry at broke through gender barriers to all of these arenas are tied together by evolving traditions
the most well known. Julius Caesar a young age. become a respected jewelry maker. and the respect artists have for their predecessors as they
was a highly celebrated jeweler from Bruce first became intrigued In a 2007 interview, she said that find innovative, artistic ways to sculpt this humble but
15. Gregory Schaaf and Angie Yan Schaaf, American Indian Jewelry I: 1,200 Artist Biographies, c. 1800–Present (Santa Fe, NM: CIAC Press, 2003), 101. resilient metal.
16. Kristin G. Congdon and Kara Kelley Hallmark, American Folk Art: A Regional Reference, Volume 1 (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2012), 366.
17. “Bruce Caesar,” National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, web. 20. Karen Klinka, “Artist’s Path Leads to Honor,” The Oklahoman (June 1, 2007),
18. Ibid. web.
Mike Kodaseet (Southern Cheyenne), Eagle Pin, 2012, German silver,
19. Congdon and Hallmark, American Folk Art, 366. 21. Ibid.
private collection.
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