Brooch of a Curved Swordfish

A curved swordfish caught mid-motion is a small study in how the early Taxco workshop turned an animal into a line. The body arcs, the bill extends, and the whole figure is read in a single sweep of silver rather than in detail. Sea creatures recurred across Spratling's figural jewelry, part of the natural vocabulary he drew on in the first design period.

The piece dates from 1931 to 1946, the years when Spratling's taller in Taxco was defining what modern Mexican silver could look like. The swordfish is unstoned, relying on its outline and the curve of its body for effect.

Figural pins like this are the warm, accessible face of the Spratling output, and the marine subjects in particular reward a collector assembling a thematic group.