Thunderbird Style

The Patania’s shops in Santa Fe and Tucson were the training ground for a stunning array of Native American silversmiths

This article was originally published in the December 2021/January 2022 issue of Native American Art Magazine. It is an adaptation of Chapter 7 of Legendary Patania Jewelry.

In 1927 Italian immigrant Frank Patania Sr. opened the Thunderbird Shop in Santa Fe which sold Native American handmade arts and crafts. Patania, a trained goldsmith and fine jewelry designer, had become enamored with Native American jewelry. He quickly turned his talents to designing and fabricating sterling silver and turquoise jewelry inspired by Native designs, developing a new type of Southwest jewelry, termed “Thunderbird style” which combined Mediterranean elegance with traditional Native American materials. He became known for his exquisite craftsmanship and unique jewelry designs which displayed great attention to detail. 

As his business grew, Patania required assistance in the workshop and in 1932 hired Charles Begay, a skilled Navajo silversmith. He became the first of many Native Americans to work for the Patanias as silversmiths in the Thunderbird Shop in Santa Fe, and later also in Tucson. Some of these artists remained employed until retirement, while others, after becoming versed in the Thunderbird style, departed to work on their own, carrying with them the influence and inspiration of Patania family designs. Those who carried the Thunderbird style into their own successful careers were Lewis Lomay, Julian Lovato, Jimmie Herald and Harry Sakyesva, whose talents and body of work still resonate long after their passing. 

1940s fabricated sterling silver butterfly pins with detailed stampwork; this butterfly design was only made by the Native American silversmiths working at the Thunderbird Shop. Authors’ collection.

Lewis Lomay (Hopi), from Oraibi, enrolled in Santa Fe Indian School about 1932 where he attended the silversmithing class taught by Navajo artist Ambrose Roanhorse. In 1934 Lomay arrived in Santa Fe too late to enroll for the fall term, instead he found employment at the Thunderbird Shop where his friend Waldo Mootzka was working. Mootzka, also from Hopi, was known primarily as a painter but worked for Patania as a silversmith until his death in 1938.

Sterling silver and turquoise pin fabricated in the late 1930s, signed with the Thunderbird Shop mark and L.L., which is Lewis Lomay’s (Hopi) personal hallmark. The inclusion of Lomay’s initials is unusual, typically shop smiths did not apply their personal hallmark to pieces they made while working in the Thunderbird Shop. Courtesy Gloria Dollar, Nila Brown photographer.

Lomay was taught fine jewelry techniques by Frank Patania Sr. and later recalled, “Working with Patania I learned about modern jewelry and how to finish pieces in any metal as perfectly as they did in gold.” After the United States entered World War II, Lomay left the Thunderbird Shop to work in the defense industry. Returning to Santa Fe after the war, Lomay embarked on his own career making jewelry from a studio in his home. He entered pieces in fairs and exhibits and quickly built a reputation as a master of his craft and, by 1947, was winning multiple awards whenever he entered competitions. 

Patania influenced design pin and bolo tie made by Lewis Lomay (Hopi), after he was no longer working at the Thunderbird Shop. Authors’ collection.

Through the following decades, his jewelry was represented by notable southwest galleries, such as Shop of the Rainbow Man in Santa Fe. His jewelry reflected the influence of the designs he absorbed from his years working at the Thunderbird Shop; his pieces were carefully and painstakingly made with a fresh and imaginative beauty. Throughout his career, Lomay combined traditional Hopi designs with new ideas and modern techniques in silver and gold. 

Lewis Lomay (Hopi) created this floral spray pin with turquoise and coral settings. He gained experience making this type of design from working with Frank Patania Sr. at the Thunderbird Shop. Authors’ collection.

Julian Lovato was born at Kewa Pueblo (Santo Domingo) in 1925 into a family of jewelry makers and as a child he observed his father and grandfather create silver and turquoise jewelry. In his teens he started making jewelry on his own, but enlisted in the Army in 1944 and served in the Philippines during World War II. Upon returning to New Mexico, he married Marie Oyengue of San Juan Pueblo in 1946 and the couple moved to Santa Fe. 

Lovato worked as a silversmith in various Santa Fe shops for a number of years, until 1952 when he was hired by Frank Patania Sr. to work in the Thunderbird Shop. Julian was assigned the work bench next to Frank Patania Jr., who later recounted that he learned some soldering techniques from Julian who was already well-trained in Native American traditional designs and techniques when he was hired. Julian easily adapted to working in the Thunderbird style. 

Sterling silver and turquoise belt buckle and monogrammed letter opener by Julian Lovato (Kewa Pueblo). Lovato’s clean, elegant creations were influenced by designs he worked with at the Thunderbird Shop. Authors’ collection.

Patania Sr. introduced Lovato to new techniques and modern jewelry designs that influenced his career, also teaching him to initially sketch his ideas on paper. Lovato worked all day in the shop and then during the evening at home he spent hours in his own workshop, refining his talent. He had become the Santa Fe shop’s chief silversmith when Frank Patania Sr. passed away in 1964. 

When the Patania family closed the Santa Fe shop at the end of 1964, manager John Wheeler bestowed the Santa Fe Thunderbird Shop hallmark die upon Lovato, and Patania’s widow Aurora gave him permission to use the stamp on his work. Julian Lovato became known as “Keeper of the Thunderbird,” and was proud to be able to incorporate that mark with his own hallmark.

No one was better at adapting Patania designs and making them uniquely theirs than was Julian Lovato (Kewa Pueblo). This coral and silver necklace and earring set exemplifies the best of Lovato’s designs. The pendant hangs from one of Marie Lovato’s dot-and-dash chains. Courtesy White collection.

In 1991 Lovato recalled, “Frank Patania was just like a father. That’s where I began to get the idea that if I concentrate and work hard, I can do it. He helped me develop into what I do.” Lovato moved back to Santo Domingo Pueblo and worked on his own, creating his own unique jewelry designs and built a very successful career. 

Lovato’s contemporary style utilized clean, elegant lines with layers of materials that he referred to as “raised” or “dimensional,” a technique he learned from Frank Patania Sr. He designed his pieces around the shape of the setting and was able to work the bezel in such a way that the gemstone or coral settings appeared to float above the surface of the piece. His wife Marie worked with him, and while Julian designed and fashioned the jewelry, she did some of the more intricate finishing of pieces. Marie was also well known for her modern design dot-and-dash necklace chains, adapted from a Patania design.

Harry Sakyesva, born in 1922 at the Hopi village of Hotevilla, was hired by Frank Patania Sr. in 1952 to work as a silversmith in the Thunderbird Shop. Prior to that he graduated from Santa Fe Indian School and received treatment in an Albuquerque sanatorium between 1941 and 1945 for a lung disease. Afterwards, he moved to Santa Fe where he painted depictions of Hopi life for various galleries.

Harry Sakyesva (Hopi) crafted this bolo tie with the Valley National Bank logo in the 1960s. He would have become experienced in cutting out letters while making monogrammed pieces at the Thunderbird Shop in the 1950s. Authors’ collection.

While employed by the Patanias, Sakyesva’s summers were spent working in the Santa Fe shop. During the winter months he moved to Tucson to work, where he was frequently seated at the bench set up in the display window. Frank Patania Jr. remembers Sakyesva worked for them for five or six years and during that time was in treatment periodically at the Indian Hospital.

After leaving the Thunderbird Shop, Sakyesva relocated to the Phoenix area where he opened his own silver shop in Scottsdale in 1961 with his Hopi friend Morris Robinson, where for a few years they made “fine custom-made Hopi overlay” jewelry. He also made commissioned custom designs that were heavily influenced by monogram work he would have learned from the Patanias.

Jimmie Herald’s employment by the Patania family occurred by chance. He was born into a family of silversmiths in 1914 on the Navajo Reservation near Gallup, New Mexico. He was educated at the government boarding school at Crown Point. Having learned basic silversmithing skills from being around his family, he had no desire to work as a silversmith, but fate intervened.

Herald offered to drive a friend to Tucson in 1938 where he ran out of money before he could return home. Since silversmithing was what he knew, Herald went to the Thunderbird Shop and asked for work. Frank Patania Sr. told him that if he wanted to be a good silversmith, then he would train him; inevitably Jimmie became one of the most valuable silversmiths at the Thunderbird Shop, and was trusted to work on the most important pieces. 

Navajo style squash blossom necklace set with Morenci turquoise crafted by Jimmie Herald, Navajo, while working at the Thunderbird Shop in the late 1930s or early 1940s. Patania’s design influence can be seen in the construction of the blossoms. Courtesy Patania collection.

During World War II Jimmie Herald served in the Army, after returning to Tucson in 1945 he married Hazel Enos, a Pima (Akimel O’odham) woman from Sacaton, and they had two children. Jimmie’s older brother Herbert Herald also worked in the Tucson shop in the 1940s and 1950s.

Jimmie later recalled something Frank Patania Sr. said to him, “It’s not how you look or what you are that means your reputation. Let your work speak for you. Always do your best.” Herald kept that thought in mind, endeavoring to always improve his work, and wanting customers to be satisfied. 

Silver and turquoise Bits of Silver design bolo tie made by Jimmie Herald, Navajo, 1970s-80s. The design was originated by Frank Patania Jr. for the Thunderbird Shop. Authors’ collection.

In the early 1970s Jimmie retired from the Thunderbird Shop, but continued to make some jewelry on his own in his home studio. Most of the designs he used in his personal jewelry were modern and based on those he made while working for the Patanias.

Daniel Enos Jr., of Pima (Akimel O’odham) descent, was a master silversmith who worked in the Tucson Thunderbird Shop for all three generations of the Patanias. Courtesy Patania archives.

Daniel Enos Jr., Pima (Akimel O’odham), was the lone Native American silversmith to work for the Patanias who only made jewelry during his time as a Thunderbird employee. He was born on the Gila River Reservation in 1927, attended Presbyterian Indian Training School in Tucson as a youth, then served in the Marines during World War II.

Daniel Enos Jr., Pima (Akimel O’odham), constructed this Patania influenced sterling silver and turquoise squash blossom necklace in the 1970s. This is one the few Thunderbird Shop pieces to exhibit Dan’s personal hallmark along with shop marks. Courtesy Patania collection.

Returning to Tucson after the war, he worked as a heavy equipment driver, wheat combine operator and welder. In 1950 he was persuaded by his brother-in-law, Jimmie Herald, to learn the intricacies of silversmithing. Enos said he would try it for two weeks, and after 42 years with the Thunderbird Shop, he retired in 1992. He was a highly skilled and trusted silversmith who worked continuously in the Thunderbird style for all three generations of Patanias. 

The modern designs incorporated within these artist’s creations have influenced subsequent generations of Native American silversmiths, though some may not be aware these styles and techniques originated with Patania family designs born in the Thunderbird Shop.

Legendary Patania Jewelry

In the Tradition of the Southwest

Now available!

Celebrate three generations of significant American jewelers—their stories and their stunning work—in the only authorized history of the Patania family.

The Patania’s unique jewelry blends their Italian heritage, midcentury modern design, and influences from Native American southwestern jewelry, resulting in a singular and striking style. The authors chronicle the history of the family from 1899, when Frank Patania Sr. was born in Italy, through his son Frank Patania Jr., up to the present day, where the third generation, Sam Patania, continues the tradition of designing and making modern jewelry with a southwestern flair. This first full-length publication for collectors, historians, and enthusiasts documents the jewelry made by the Patanias and their craftsmen, sold at the Thunderbird Shop, including information to attribute and date pieces, history of hallmarks used, and biographies of noted silversmiths who worked there. Beautiful images, including full-page photos of never-before-published masterpieces, make this the definitive resource on the family and their continuing legacy.

Book Details:
ISBN: 978-0-7643-6446-4
Size: 8 1/2″ x 11″
Illustrations: 304 color and b/w images
Pages: 256
Binding: hard cover
Price: $60.00

Available at SchifferBooks.com and Amazon.com.

Our Exciting New Project

In April 2020 we were approached by the Patania family to write a history of the Thunderbird Shops located in Santa Fe and Tucson. Not only are we honored to have been asked, we’re excited to take this on as our next project.

Having delved into a bit of the history of the Thunderbird Shop, especially the hallmarks used there, in Reassessing Hallmarks of Native Southwest Jewelry, we are somewhat familiar with the story we are tasked to tell.

But having access to Frank Jr, Sam and the family archives means we can convey the legacy of three generations of Patania artisans to its fullest.

Please excuse us during this time for the lack of new content here, but every spare minute is being devoted to photography, research and writing in an effort to have the Patania book in collector’s hands as soon as possible.

Caveat Emptor

Definition of Caveat Emptor from the Cornell University Law School web site:

Latin for “let the buyer beware.” A doctrine that often places on buyers the burden to reasonably examine property before purchase and take responsibility for its condition. Especially applicable to items that are not covered under a strict warranty.

And even more applicable to vintage, pawn or antique American Indian jewelry.

There is a distressing recent trend in the vintage American Indian jewelry market – that of applying faked hallmarks of highly collectible silversmiths to jewelry of dubious quality. This trend started some years ago with the fabrication of jewelry in the style of Charles Loloma to which fraudulent hallmarks were applied. That nearly ruined the market for Loloma’s jewelry as dealers and collectors that had been burned by fakes were (and still are) leery to consider investing again. And with good reason, those fakes will haunt the market for decades to come.

Example of fraudulent Charles Loloma hallmark.
Above: Example of fraudulent Charles Loloma hallmark.

Now this practice has extended to the application of fraudulent hallmarks of other important silversmiths, such as Ike Wilson, Fred Peshlakai, Preston Monongye and Frank Patania, to jewelry of poor quality, and often made by Anglo silversmiths.

It should be noted that this isn’t the first time fake Indian jewelry has flooded the market. Starting in the early 1900s and continuing for decades, the mass-production of machine made Indian style jewelry made companies like H.H. Tammen, Arrow Novelty Company, Silver Products, Bell Trading Company and Maisel’s financially successful while the native artists struggled.

Those who remember the “Boom” of the 1970s are also familiar with the reproductions of traditional Navajo silver by hippie silversmiths from the Pagosa Springs, Colorado region and the proliferation of Anglo made Indian style jewelry. Few of these pieces were hallmarked so many have passed, and continue to pass, as “old pawn.”

Also memorable was the preponderance of counterfeit Navajo spoons, most often in the style featuring the profile of an Indian in a headdress on the handle or with the word NAVAJO etched in the bowl, after the publication of Navajo Spoons in 2001. While fake Hopi overlay, with contrived hallmarks, and fake Zuni inlay, copied from vintage issues of Arizona Highways magazine have been imported from international (off shore and south of the border) locations, and sold online and in disreputable shops for over a decade.

Previously buyers could be assured of the authenticity of a piece if it bore the hallmark of a recognized artist, and it didn’t require them to have a great deal of knowledge about the history of Indian jewelry to feel comfortable investing in high quality jewelry. But now it’s becoming common to see hallmarked jewelry misrepresented as that of some of the most respected and highly collectible silversmiths. This doesn’t even take into account the misattributions by uninformed, or overly optimistic sellers, a practice which is rampant on eBay and internet auction sites.

eBay is no help in these matters. As much lip service as they give to stopping counterfeiters from selling through their website, they make it inordinately difficult for buyers to report sellers of fakes. One shouldn’t need to jump through hoops, nor spend hours on the phone, to advise eBay that someone is profiting from selling counterfeits on their platform. Even more frustrating is that spurious listings are rarely ended by eBay even after they have been reported.

So how can collectors protect themselves when thousands of dollars can be at risk on a single bracelet? First, caution is the key to online transactions, if it seems too good to be true, then it probably is. But most importantly, buyers should educate themselves and become familiar with the styles and workmanship of the silversmiths they wish to purchase. Faked jewelry will often not resemble the work of the masters in either style or quality. For collectors, working with a trusted dealer is essential in gaining the knowledge necessary to make informed purchases.

The artists whose hallmarks are currently being forged are deceased (convenient for the forgers), and their work commands top dollar. These artists did not become so respected, and their jewelry so highly valued, because they produced inferior work. These artists made jewelry of the highest quality. Contrary to opinions that even great silversmiths had bad days, substandard work is the hallmark of the amateur, inexperienced, or sloppy silversmith. Poor quality silverwork or low grade and treated stones should raise red flags right away that the artist was not a skilled silversmith.

The only way to combat the fakers is through knowledgeable buyers. Once everyone sees their forgeries for what they are, and their market dries up, then they will stop counterfeiting Indian jewelry and move on to something more profitable (and hopefully something you don’t collect).

Examples of recent forged hallmarks

NOT a hallmark used by Bernard Dawahoya.
NOT a hallmark used by Bernard Dawahoya.
NOT a hallmark used by Preston Monongye #1.
NOT a hallmark used by Preston Monongye #1.
NOT a hallmark used by Preston Monongye #2
NOT a hallmark used by Preston Monongye #2.
NOT a hallmark used by Fred Peshlakai.
NOT a hallmark used by Fred Peshlakai.
NOT the shop mark used by Frank Patania or the Thunderbird Shop.
NOT the shop mark used by Frank Patania or the Thunderbird Shop.
A poor attempt to fake the hallmark of Morris Robinson.
Updated Dec 27, 2015 = Here’s a new one, a poor attempt to fake the hallmark of Morris Robinson.
This is definitely NOT the hallmark used by Hopi Harold Koruh.
Updated May, 17, 2016 = This is definitely NOT the hallmark used by Hopi Harold Koruh.
By adding an H it make sit appear to be a hallmark used by an early Hopi silversmith…again, NOT Harold Koruh's hallmark.
And this is even more inventive, adding the H to make it appear to be a hallmark used by an early Hopi silversmith…again, NOT Harold Koruh’s hallmark.

Originally published on our Goodreads.com blog December 10, 2014.