RETIRED James Avery Sterling Silver ASL I Love You Sign Language Charm Pendant

Retired James Avery sterling silver charm modeled as a hand making the American Sign Language sign for I love you, with an uncut James Avery loop, marked AVERY and STER on the base. The hand is sculpted fully in the round rather than cut from flat stock, so the palm is modeled with its natural hollow, the back of the hand carries its own contour, and the three raised digits stand clear in three dimensions. The thumb and index extend outward, the pinky stands straight up, and the middle and ring fingers fold down against the palm with the knuckles defined. The wrist ends in a rounded cuff that forms a flat oval base, and the cast eye rises from behind the index finger.

Building this as a sculpture rather than a silhouette is what makes it work. The sign is defined by which fingers are up and which are folded, and a flat cutout flattens that distinction into ambiguity, while a modeled hand lets the folded fingers read as genuinely folded from any angle. The raised digits also give the charm an irregular outline that catches the eye among rounder charms on a bracelet. The oval base keeps the hand standing upright rather than twisting on the loop. Scale is shown in the photos against a grid. This design is retired and no longer in production.

The loop is uncut, which is the condition James Avery collectors look for and means it attaches exactly as it left the workshop. Hangs on a James Avery charm bracelet or on a chain as a pendant. Comes with the James Avery box and pouch.

Details:
Designer: James Avery
Metal: Sterling Silver
Hallmarks: AVERY, STER
Design: ASL I Love You Sign
Construction: Sculpted in the Round
Type: Charm Pendant
Loop: Uncut
Status: Retired
Includes: James Avery box and pouch
Condition: Excellent estate condition

Fun Facts:
The sign is three letters stacked into one handshape. In the American Sign Language manual alphabet the raised pinky alone is I, the thumb and index together form L, and the thumb and pinky together form Y, so holding all of them at once spells I L Y simultaneously rather than in sequence. It is a word compressed into a single gesture.
American Sign Language is not English rendered with the hands. It has its own grammar and syntax, and its lineage runs through French Sign Language, carried to the United States in 1817 by Laurent Clerc, who founded the first permanent American school for the deaf in Hartford alongside Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet. The practical result is that a deaf American and a deaf Briton generally cannot understand one another, while an American and a French signer share a great deal.