Rare Vintage Old Style Zuni Fetish Eagle ex Chester Howard Collection

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Rare Vintage Old Style Zuni Fetish Eagle ex Chester Howard Collection:
$86.50

For your consideration is this authentic vintage Zuni fetish. It was collected by the late Chester Howard who specialized in Native American artifacts and formed his collection during the 1930s through the 1970s.This particular fetish is an eagle. It is carved from richolite with drilled eyes, carved mouth, and three turquoise insets. The eyes, mouth, and other areas of the body are highlighted with a thick red paint. This is a very unusual style eagle! It measures 1 3/8\" long, 1\" wide, and 3/4\" high. There is no signature or artist\'s initials, which is typical of old pieces made in an era when they were not greatly commercialized.To get more background information on the Chester Howard Collection fetishes, I contacted Mr. Joe Tanner, Sr. (an old-time trader from Gallup, NM) over a decade ago. He told me the following: \"Every clan at Zuni has its fetish carvers. Fetishes are used as teaching tools for the children in the same way that Kachina dolls are used at Hopi. Fetish carving for the market got a boost from Anglo interest in the Cushing fetishes, especially beginning in the 1950s. Many clan carvers would make a few fetishes to sell \'for the trade.\' When I would go on buying trips to Zuni in the 1950s-60s many of the old men would approach me with a bag full of fetishes to sell that were similar in appearance to the ones in the Howard Collection. I would personally focus attention on the better carvers, master carvers like Leekya.\"It is ironic that the fetishes of the Chester Howard collection were considered less appealing to collectors of the 1950s-60s due to their \"primitive\" appearance. Yet it is exactly this \"primitive\" appearance which indicates they were of a type made by the Zuni for their own use and thus much more authentic. They are also more difficult to find than the fancier fetishes made strictly for collectors. This fetish will be accompanied by a copy of the Guarantee of Authenticity provided by Hank Johnson of HD Enterprises, which originally sold much of the Chester Howard Collection.PLEASE SEE MY LISTINGS FOR OTHER ZUNI FETISHES FROM THE CHESTER HOWARD COLLECTION!I ship to the US only.