Design Families

Amethyst Frog

Frog figures with amethyst cabochons

First Period, late 1930s

Spratling bracelet built around a row of cabochon amethysts set into figural frog forms — a recurring motif across his First Period.

Mask

Pre-Columbian / Mesoamerican mask forms

Taxco school, broad

Pre-Columbian and Mesoamerican mask forms translated into wearable silver — Spratling, Aguilar, Los Castillo treatments.

Tree of Life

Stylized vegetal/figural form; silver with bronze beads

First Period, late 1930s

Spratling's stylized vegetal/figural pin reading as a tree from one orientation and a dancer from another. Silver with bronze bead accents.

Zodiac

Twelve zodiac figures in champlevé enamel

Margot atelier, 1950s-60s

Margot de Taxco's enamel necklace cycle depicting the twelve zodiac signs in champlevé enamel on silver.

Birdcage

Architectural openwork suggesting cage-and-bird

Pineda mid-period, 1950s

Antonio Pineda's openwork architectural bracelet design suggesting a bird in a cage — a hallmark of his mid-century jewel-set vocabulary.

Cascabeles (Bells)

Hollow silver bells in articulated chains

Spratling First Period onward

Articulated bell-charm bracelets and necklaces, originally Spratling, widely imitated. Cascabeles ring softly when worn.

Eagle

Eagle / águila figural

Taxco school, broad

Eagle figures in Taxco silver — drawing on Mexican national iconography and pre-Columbian sources alike.

Feather

Stylized feather form

Taxco school, 1940s-50s

Stylized feather forms — particularly Aguilar and Los Castillo — drawing from Aztec/Mixtec ceremonial regalia.

Fish and Waves

Fish + cresting wave forms

Taxco school, 1940s-50s

Recurring Taxco-school motif of stylized fish among cresting waves; treatments span Spratling, Aguilar, and Los Castillo.

Monkey Head

Cast monkey head, full-relief sculpture

Taller Borda, early 1940s

Aguilar's cast pin depicting a stylized monkey head — characteristic of Taller Borda's bold figural pins.

Needle Necklace

Radiating needles in linear array

Pineda Taller, 1950s

Antonio Pineda's signature linear necklace built from elongated silver needles radiating outward — a study in tension and geometry.

Onyx Architectural

Architectural cuff with rectangular onyx

Pineda Taller, 1950s

Antonio Pineda's signature architectural cuff form set with rectangular onyx panels — a study in geometry and stone.

Pre-Columbian Cuff

Pre-Columbian carved relief on cuff form

Taxco school, broad

Heavy silver cuff bracelets drawing on Mixtec/Aztec relief carving — a Taxco-school staple across makers.

Quetzalcóatl

Feathered serpent / pre-Columbian deity

Taxco school, broad

The feathered-serpent deity rendered across Taxco-school work — Spratling, Los Castillo, MATL — as bracelet, brooch, and pendant.

Snake

Articulated snake / serpent form

Taxco school, broad

Articulated snake forms rendered as bracelets and necklaces, particularly in Margot de Taxco's enamel work.

Sun and Moon

Sun, moon, star figures

Taxco school, broad

Cosmological pairing widespread across Taxco design — sun, moon, and stellar forms in pendants, brooches, and earrings.