PROVENANCE:

Now this is an EXTREMELY RARE piece!

No one can ever say that they owned ANYTHING that was apart of Federico's own jewelry collection that he wore, because nothing has ever been,nor might not ever be available! This is why this is such a rare piece because you just won't find it! Everything you find will be made by him, will have his "FJ" hallmark or have been apart of his "Museum Collection" where these are meant for resale. This is not that kind of piece.. Just like we wear our own favorite piece of jewelry that we rarely take off except to go to sleep,this was that piece for Federico..This is a piece that he wore & carried with him when he came from Oaxaca back in the 60's & was his own PERSONAL pendant that he proudly wore everyday & not a day went by,that he didn't have it on! I am listing this from the 60's because it's known to be at least that old, but could possibly be older than that & is apart of his legacy..

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A LITTLE ABOUT THE OLMEC PEOPLE:

The Olmecs were the earliest known major Mesoamerican civilization & prospered in "Preclassic Era" & date as far back to the years 2,500 - 400 BCE. They were located in ancient Mexico in coastal areas of the Gulf of Mexico (now the states of Veracruz and Tabasco),to grow crops such as corn and beans. Monumental sacred complexes, massive stone sculptures, ball games, the drinking of chocolate, and animal gods were all features of Olmec culture passed on to those people who followed this first great Mesoamerican civilization & some historians even believe that the Mayans were the descendants of the Olmecs. Most of us know them by their HUGE stone carvings that are found in Museums & that emulate the faces of their people from years & years past.

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THE PENDANT:

This is a hand carved figure that is from one solid piece of turquoise that is then sculpted & smoothed. Uniquely held by a sterling wire that is threaded through it's neck that’s connected by sterling sheet that is cut to fit it's body form on the backside. ( see photo 9) It appears that the bale was separate & was soldered to the sheet.

It comes with one of Federico's "Hand Made" sterling link chains that you can wear with it or you can use the chain on something else & use another necklace of your own that comes in a shorter or longer length! (Like a strand of Navajo Pearls, a leather strip, another sterling chain,etc) The beauty however with the chain is for the fact that you just don't come across hand made chains too often since they are very time consuming to make! The chain has a dual texture,with one link being a smooth wire,while the next link is twisted wire.Each link is soldered together & has a hook/eye closure & has a "JF hallmark (see last photo) The chain is new & is not old like the pendant.