Amethyst Aztec Sunburst Bracelet

This bracelet captures William Spratling at the height of his powers. Spratling, the American who founded the Taxco silver revival in the 1930s, produced it during the greatest production period his workshop ever enjoyed, and its popularity made it one of the designs most associated with that boom. It is recorded in Reflections: Pre-Columbian Inspiration in Mexican Silver Design, 1930-1970 and in Phyllis M. Goddard's Spratling Silver: A Field Guide.

The design is an Aztec sunburst, with two more amethysts set beyond the sunburst itself. The radiating form draws on the pre-Columbian sources Spratling looked to throughout his career, and the amethysts add color at the points where the composition extends past the central motif.

Its appeal was not lost on Spratling's contemporaries. The bracelet was copied extensively by other silversmiths, sometimes with slight modifications, a sign of how desirable the design was during those peak years. It was an expensive bracelet for its time.

Because of that popularity, this was not a rare design, and its wide circulation is part of its story. It remains a clear, well-referenced example of the first-period work that built Spratling's reputation.