{"product_id":"vintage-bell-trading-post-sterling-silver-southwestern-turquoise-ring-size-7","title":"Vintage Bell Trading Post Sterling Silver Southwestern Turquoise Ring - Size 7","description":"\u003cp\u003eVintage Bell Trading Post sterling silver Southwestern style ring set with a long marquise cut green turquoise cabochon, marked STERLING with the Bell Trading Post arrow post hanging bell sign. The stone is bezel set in a smooth collar and sits high enough to catch light along its length rather than lying flat in the mount, running an even deep green across the whole face. Two borders surround it. The inner one is twisted rope wire, laid as a continuous spiral that reads as a braided cord at arm's length, and outside that runs a full ring of raised silver beads, each one domed and separately applied. The recesses behind both borders are oxidized dark while the beads and rope stay bright, so the frame reads as a sequence of distinct highlights rather than a solid mass of silver. The shank splits into two rails at the shoulders before rejoining under the head.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe mark dates this ring precisely. Bell Trading Post used three distinct hallmarks across its lifetime, and the arrow post with the hanging bell sign stamped inside this shank was introduced in 1961 and retired around 1972. That places the ring inside a twelve year window rather than the vague decades most unsigned Southwestern silver gets assigned. The company behind it opened in Albuquerque in 1932, founded by Jack Michelson and his wife as Route 66 was being established through New Mexico, built entirely around travelers moving along that road. Native silversmiths worked the shop floor, and by the mid 1930s Michelson had installed machinery that let the operation supply tourist shops across the Southwest from a single address. Bell Trading Post was absorbed into Sunbell at the end of the 1960s and the name was gone by about 1970.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSize 7. The marquise head runs lengthwise along the finger, which makes the ring read tall and narrow rather than wide, and the split shank keeps the weight down under the finger.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVerifications:\u003cbr\u003eSterling silver has been verified using JSP Silver Testing Solution.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDetails:\u003cbr\u003eMaker: Bell Trading Post\u003cbr\u003eOrigin: Albuquerque, New Mexico\u003cbr\u003eCirca: 1961 to 1972\u003cbr\u003eMetal: Sterling Silver\u003cbr\u003eHallmarks: STERLING, Bell Trading Post arrow post hanging bell sign\u003cbr\u003eStone: Green Turquoise\u003cbr\u003eStone Cut: Marquise\u003cbr\u003eStone Setting: Bezel\u003cbr\u003eBorders: Twisted rope wire and applied silver beads\u003cbr\u003eFinish: Bright silver with oxidized recesses\u003cbr\u003eBand Style: Split Shank\u003cbr\u003eRing Size: 7\u003cbr\u003eCondition: Excellent estate condition\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFun Facts:\u003cbr\u003eBell Trading Post was a Route 66 business before Route 66 was famous. Jack Michelson and his wife opened it in Albuquerque in 1932, positioned for the traffic on the highway then being established across New Mexico, and the entire enterprise was built on selling silver and turquoise work to people passing through. Native silversmiths worked in the shop, and by the mid 1930s the operation had machinery that let it supply tourist shops across the Southwest from one Albuquerque address.\u003cbr\u003eDuring the Second World War the company stopped making jewelry almost entirely and started making the war. With silver and copper restricted, Bell Trading Post retooled to produce military insignia, turning out lapel badges, paratrooper pins and identification bracelets for servicemen. It is an unusual line on a jewelry maker's record, and it is the reason the company survived a period that closed a great many of its competitors outright.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bell Trading","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53215118098797,"sku":null,"price":75.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0972\/8272\/0109\/files\/Vintage_Bell_Trading_Post_Sterling_Silver_Southwestern_Ring_Circa_1961_to_1972_with_Marquise_Green_Turquoise_Cabochon_Framed_by_Twisted_Rope_and_Raised_Silver_Beads.png?v=1793076071","url":"https:\/\/silverqueenstudio.com\/products\/vintage-bell-trading-post-sterling-silver-southwestern-turquoise-ring-size-7","provider":"Silver Queen Studio","version":"1.0","type":"link"}