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When buying Indian crafts, know what you are doing
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Attention, shoppers. If you plan to buy American-Indian jewelry, baskets or pottery in New Mexico, be careful. There are a lot of fakes out there.
A New Mexican law called the Indian Arts and Crafts Enforcement Act prohibits misrepresentation of Indian arts. The target of the law is cheap knockoffs made in Asia.
"Misrepresentation runs rampant," said Zac Cox, whose grandparents have run the Rainbow Man store in Santa Fe since 1945. Their shop specializes in older American-Indian crafts and jewelry, sometimes called "old pawn" that was made from about 1900 to 1950. But even old pawn jewelry can be faked, an insult to the original makers who scraped up rare materials to create beautiful things.
"People don't realize how hard it was to create it," Cox said, pointing to a heavy turquoise-and-silver cuff bracelet circa 1930. Such bracelets can sell for about $350 to $1,500.
How can a tourist know what's reputable? The New Mexico-based Council for Indigenous Arts and Culture urges you to buy either direct from an artist or a reputable dealer. American-Indian vendors at the Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe Plaza have been vetted by a special state program. Museum shops have authentic products.
Avoid stores with continual sales or deep discounts.
If you buy, get an original receipt and certificate of authenticity, including the description of the product, the name of the artist and tribal affiliation, the full address and phone number. Silver should be marked "sterling." There should be an artist's hallmark, or stamp, on the piece.
While in New Mexico, I showed what I thought might be an old Navajo bracelet to several jewelers in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. I had bought the silver and lapis bracelet for $5 or $10 about 20 years ago in Michigan.
The verdict? It was Navajo. It was real. It was probably made in the 1970s or '80s and signed by someone named "B. Yazzie."
It was worth a lot more than $5, three dealers said.
For more tips, see http://www.ciaccouncil.org.
— Ellen Creager
— Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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