Work of a Taxco silversmith

Creating a piece of silver jewelry can involve a number of techniques. The master silversmiths of Taxco produce some of the world's best work. An example is the set below, which appears to be very simple, requires a high level of skill to produce.


First the silver is rolled through a hand press into sheets of the desired thickness. In this instance, about a sixteenth of an inch or approximately 4mm. Each disk is then cut by hand from the sheet using a jeweler's hand saw. (We'll show you those in another segment.)

If you look closely you will see a tongue on one side of each circle, and on the other a cutout to receive the tongue. Cutting the circles with this level of precision requires a steady hand and much experience.

After cutting the pieces the silversmith drills a small hole in the tongue and in the corresponding section of the "receiving" circle. The holes are lined up and secured with a silver pin which is soldered into place.

While the circles in the bracelet form a straight line when laid out, the circles themselves must curve to fit the wrist. So before the smith can join the pieces, each circle must be shaped into the appropriate curve.

The circles for the necklace cannot be identical, and must be cut so the different segments form a circle that sits comfortably on the wearer's neck. The tongue and groove must be placed differently on each segment to achieve this, but these circles themselves do not need to curve as with the bracelet design.

The silversmith must also create a clasp, modifying the end circles to receive it.

Once assembled, the smith smooths off any rough edges left by the saw cuts or soldering, and polishes the piece on a polishing wheel.

If you try to lay out these pieces using a paper model you will start to appreciate the skills required to do this in silver!