Large, Heavy Navajo conch belt, signed Leonard Martza

Large, heavy Navajo conch belt, signed: Leonard Martza. 9 heavy sterling silver stamped conchos with geometric hand-stamped details. Brown leather is 47.5" long and the front buckle is 3" long and 2" tall. 

Artist Bio:

Leonard Martza (1928–) is a Zuni silversmith active since the late 1940s, recognized for multiple styles including wrought, mosaic inlay, and stone sets. He is best known for butterfly, rainbow man, and knife wing motifs. He collaborated with Betty Natachu, Lisa Tucson (his niece), and Margaret Edaakie. During the 1950s and 1960s he worked for C. G. Wallaca and the Gallup Indian Trading Company, and at Pueblo Trading near Zuni. Hougart's hallmark reference notes that much of the inlay jewelry bearing his mark was silver base work he produced, while the inlay stone sets were designed and supplied by others. His mark is not specified in the recovered excerpt.