Cross Pendant with Hardstone

A carved hardstone set into silver concentrates the MATL manner into a single pendant, the stone framed by the workshop's dense, baroque silverwork. The form makes a compact statement of the polychrome idiom the taller was known for.

The MATL shop was distinguished by its carving and setting of colored stones; Ricardo Salas, who trained beside Matilde Poulat, was noted for perfecting the cutting of coral, turquoise, and other materials (Morrill, p. 216). The pendant's ornamented surface belongs to the same baroque tradition that shaped the workshop's silver from the start (Morrill, p. 83).

MATL introduced its mark in 1934 as part of the post-Revolution turn toward Mexican folk and Pre-Conquest sources. The stone setting marks this among the workshop's more decorative pieces.