The Prodigal Plates Return!

 Sometimes, the objects we handle have a personal connection to us that makes them extra-special.  Here is the story of something just like that:

There are four silver plates by Ike Wilson, each exactly alike.  Here is a closer photo of one of them:

You can see the large size of each plate--just over 5 3/4" in diameter.  (The dollar bill is just for scale, and not included with the plates.)  Condition is wonderful--any smudges or blemishes on the inside are a figment of the photo, and do not exist in real life.  Here is a detail shot of the incredible stampwork:

The spacing on the stampwork is perfect, and the composition is incredible.  Here is a picture of the bottom:

The four dishes nest together very well.  And here is the hallmark:

Each plate is hallmarked with a bow and arrow, and this is where it gets really interesting.  That is the hallmark for Ike Wilson, a great Navajo silversmith who was accidentally shot to death by his wife Katherine in 1942.  After Ike's death, Katherine continued to use his stamps and hallmark until the 1980s, so many pieces that have been attributed to Ike were really done by Katherine.  However, since these plates were collected before 1938, this is definitely Ike's work.  (Thanks to Kim and Pat Messier for their research on Ike and Katherine Wilson, published in their 2014 book REASSESSING HALLMARKS OF NATIVE SOUTHWEST JEWELRY.  It is a must-have for any serious collector of Southwest Indian silverwork.)

And the story behind these plates?  Here it is:

It was the summer of 1993, and I (Steve) was working for the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center in Cortez, Colorado.  My job was in the Field Seminars department, which was a very fancy way of saying I was a tour bus driver and tour arranger.  We would take groups around the Southwest to important and interesting cultural and archaeological places (I long ago lost count of how many times I've been to Chaco Canyon), all in the comfort of 15-person Ford vans with luggage racks on top.  Among other things, I got to know where every gas station bathroom in the Four Corners area was located.  But seriously, it was a great experience.

Most people would fly into the Durango airport, and the trips would begin from Cortez.  Lost or delayed luggage was a pretty frequent problem, and often one of the Field Seminars drivers who was not part of a trip would be called upon to shuttle a late bag to wherever the person happened to be.  In this case, it was at Hopi, a five-hour drive from Durango.  Needless to say, I was pretty waxed when I got to the Hopi Cultural Center and delivered the bag, so I was going to stay overnight there and have dinner with the group.  After eating, they were supposed to hear a presentation from the Hopi Cultural Preservation Officer, but half an hour after it was supposed to begin, he had not shown up.  To kill some time, I offered to do a short talk on the trading post system on the Navajo and Hopi reservations, which eventually turned into a two-hour question and answer session.  (No, he never did show up.)

Afterwards, a very nice older woman came up to me and said she had enjoyed the talk very much, and also that she liked the bracelet I was wearing.  She mentioned that a relative of hers had collected a number of "chief's bracelets" like that, as well as other pieces, and she was looking to sell them. She said she would call when she got back to Pennsylvania, and we went our separate ways.  I went off to bed, and the next day back to Cortez.

Turns out, this relative had spent every summer in the 1920s and 1930s in Estes Park, Colorado, and had bought quite a bit of very nice Indian silver.  She stopped going out West in 1938, so everything dated to before that.  A lot of great pieces, with great provenance, all totally fresh to the market.  Included in that were some tableware items, including some silver plates.  Believe me, it didn't take long to sell every last piece.

Fast forward to last month, I came upon a listing that looked interesting, for 4 Ike Wilson silver plates.  When I looked closer, I saw that the provenance listed a 1994 sales slip from Turkey Mountain Traders, saying that they had been bought in Colorado before 1938.  Here were the prodigal (not in a bad way) plates, just waiting for us to bring them home.  So, we did, and here they are: 

So, you have a set of four important masterpieces with a renowned known maker and solid provenance, and a cute backstory to boot.  The price for the four plates is $4200.  Please call 480-423-8777 with any questions or email us at info@turkey-mountain.com.